Halo: Alpha and Beta
by Boospartan
Summary: ONI Section Zero, the unspeakable and unheard of internal affairs division of humanity's darkest group of protectors. As chaos begins to unravel in the months after the events at the Ark, Special Detatchment Group Zeta of Section Zero may be the last line of defense against a new enroaching threat. The wayward and ragtag team must work together, lest the galaxy falls into darkness
1. Prologue

HALO: ALPHA and BETA

Prologue

_You never told me, did you? I watched as one observing the clouds during the sunset, those wispy creations of the natural world continued their course ever away from sight. Or as an insignificant addition to a party filled with energy and life. You never told me how nonexistent and unimportant I really was to you. You completed everything without a second thought or hesitation, you continued your path, and you did this all without needing me. Of course you asked for help, like the kind father who asked his child for assistance even though he didn't require it. You of all the people in this entire galaxy should have known, should have guessed what would happen, right? Did you even know how much I desperately needed your...what? What did I honestly need from you? Was it really love? Or am I wrong?_


	2. Old Memories

Chapter One

January 21, 2553

0410 Hours

Inner Colony Tuwan

Her unmistakeable voice lofted around Kai and permeated into his very soul, "Like you said Kai, I'm Alpha and your Beta."

Kai quickly snapped back, his voice quivered with discontent, "Like _I _said? You have a weird way of remembering things Cay."

Cay's semi-camouflaged form leaped down from the rocky precipice that hung over Kai's bare head, his strange SPI helmet resting next to his rifle, specifically a BR55 Battle Rifle. A few small pebbles were flung in every which way from her fall, and one nicked Kai's already bruised left cheek. He examined her chameleon-like form, created by use of reactive panels on the Semi-Powered Infiltration Armor. Even though he could never get used to the camo effect, he could always tell Cay apart from the others of Gamma Company. After all, they were the closest of Team Gold, and everyone on the team knew they were the leaders of the team, and maybe something more... "Is that so Kai, man you act like a child sometimes."

Her sharp voice quickly shook Kai out of his daydreaming, like cold ice water on an unsuspecting sleeper. "Me, a child? Come on Cay, everyone knows your the baby of Gamma."

He half expected her to punch him like usual, but instead she simply stood in their small little clearing amongst the jungle and removed her helmet. Even Kai admitted to himself she definitely didn't look like a Spartan at all. She always had a small frame, and her face was always so removed from one's perception of what a Spartan would seem to be. Her appearance reminded Kai more of a woman from an old fairy tale; small nose and ears, snow white skin and light blue eyes, all completed by a long mane of blonde hair. Kai had to say it, at least to himself. She was remarkably beautiful, and those weren't words he ever used, especially not around the rest of Gold. Cay simply stood with her left side facing him, the armor no longer cloaked because the helmet wasn't attached. In her right hand she clutched to a sniper rifle and her left held her helmet. Kai said, "So did you see anything?"

Cay shot him the what-do-you-think look, "No, although from here you can only see a small fraction of the Covie base."

Kai pondered,_ we've been out here for three months, neutralizing key targets and destroying Covenant outposts and still no word from Command? Whats going on out there?_ "Kai, do you think the Lieutenant Commander and the others forgot about us? We've been on this world for three months now with no word from him or anyone in Beta-Five. What if we lost the war and the Covenant has won already?"

Kai clenched his teeth, "No way, no way we've lost. We will continue our mission here to continue to disrupt Covenant supply chains and leadership. They'll contact us, they've probably got they're hands full defending Earth right now. Still, I wish we had the rest of Team Gold here with us. Wonder what those guys are doing."

Cay walked over to Kai, set her rifle and helmet down and sat next to him, the two's armor faintly glinted in the two moon's light. "Yeah, that would be nice. But they're probably doing something important too. You know Lieutenant Commander Ambrose wouldn't separate the team unless it was important to do so. After all there's only so many Spartans."

Kai relaxed his head with a single gauntlet and lazily looked at Cay, "Can't wait to tell the team we've killed so many of those Brutes. But, we weren't in time, those colonists... they were all dead when we arrived at the LZ."

Memories of slain innocents strewn in the blackened streets, dead mothers holding what used to be a human child rushed into his memory._ That... that was three months ago and I still can't get over it. Why? Is it because that's the same thing that happened to me, and Cay and everyone else in Gamma Company? We're all orphans of the war, and now we finally get to exact revenge. It will never be enough, I want to see their worlds utterly destroyed, just like... _"Kai I need to ask you something."

The young Spartan shook off the momentary drift into memory, "Yeah spit it out."

Cay armored shoulders relaxed against the granite wall behind them, Kai couldn't help but notice her hair became ruffled up, "Do you think we could have saved those people if we gotten to the city faster?"

Kai swiftly grabbed his battle rifle and tinkered with the optics, a habit he picked up back on Onyx when he gotten into the Spartan term dubbed "snags". Snags were situations a Spartan hadn't prepared for, such as finding surviving civilians on a torch and burn op, new Covenant technology never before encountered and in this case, a question he didn't know to answer. Kai's muted hazel eyes simply stared into the rifle, seemingly trying to will it to move on it's own. He drew a long, silent sigh and looked at Cay, "You know we couldn't Cay, our SOEIV's landing solutions put us on the surface almost ten minutes _after_ the Covies attacked the city. We did our best-"

"That's not good enough Kai! There were nearly a million people living there, we should have prepared quicker, we should have launched sooner, we could have-"

Kai's mind immediately froze, _I was blind. I'm sorry Cay._ Cay suddenly got up, her gauntlets balled into fists, "Why didn't the Covenant just glass this planet! That's what they always do, just glass and glass and glass..."

Kai quickly shot up and placed both hands on her small shoulders, "Listen Cay, leave it up to ONI to figure that crap out. But I need you to stay on task _here, _okay? We probably only have a small time-frame until the sun comes up which means now's our chance to hit that base. I just need to know I can still count on you. So, what is it?"

Kai looked into her eyes and the realization came like a sudden gust of strong cold wind. The same eyes, that look of the living dead, completely shaken and lifeless. He'd seen it ten years ago, crammed inside a evacuation ship, looking out of the windows as Emerald Cove was glassed from orbit. The reflection of a grief-stricken six year old boy, who had watched as his entire family was slaughtered by sadistic chrome-armored aliens. The smell of burnt flesh hadn't really left his memories, not even the training under Chief Mendez had changed that. _I see now Cay, I can finally see. Your world must have like this place. Wow, I really am an idiot._ He hadn't realized it, but her head was pressed against his chest-plate, and he thought he could see tears running down from her dirtied cheeks. "Kai," she pressed off of him with a weak push, "Can we please go kill some alien bastards now?"

Kai formed a rare grin, "Yes ma'am."


	3. Concerning Grunts

Chapter Two- Concerning Grunts

January 21, 2553

0506 Hours

Inner Colony Tuwan

The life of an Unggoy was not something any species of the Covenant ever desired or even thought about. Bayab was on the lower end of the lowest caste of the Covenant caste system, simply put being the errand runner for pretty much everyone else. He silently cursed to himself as the lowly alien shuffled past the towering Jiralhanae and frowned as he saw two of the brutes begin a fight over a hunk of dripping red meat. The little Unggoy stopped for a split second, sucked in another breath of recycled methane and continued deeper into the base, hefting a box filled with rations that all the Unggoy knew they wouldn't see a morsel of. Most would go to the Jiralhanae and whatever was left were scraps usually scavenged by the greedy Kig-Yar. It wasn't the first time Bayab wished to be anything but a lowly grunt. The short little alien walked along a path that led up to a plateau and entered the depository, only lit by small little probe-like sticks that were hastily placed all around the base. The Unggoy's masked face grunted as he unceremoniously "placed" the box on top of a dozen others, all of which were destined to be consumed by the Jiralhanae. The modest little creature considered stealing a ration, but that thought quickly escaped him. He remembered what the Jiralhanae did to Oryap for attempting the same thing. Bayab shivered at the thought of it.

Before Bayab could leave however , he noticed a faint shadow where one shouldn't be, and his small eyes blinked rapidly and his head leaned to one side. "Yeyap, is that you again? You know what the Jiralhanae will do if they find you eating their food. You'll end up in they're bellies!"

But the shadow simply dissipated from along the wall, and the humble little Unggoy half-expected to see his friend's overweight body to come stumbling out from behind the boxes of rations. Instead, his calls were met with no reception and Bayab slowly strode over and drew his plasma pistol. He once again cursed under his breath for being an Unggoy. "Uh...Yeyap are you hiding? Just come out of there you oaf!"

The Unggoy's head turned the corner, only to see splashes of his kind's bright blue blood covering the walls and Yeyap's corpse upon a pool of his own blood. The last thing Bayab ever saw was the serrated edge of a knife come upon his face, and managed to let out a single last curse before his miserable little life ended.

Cay efficiently wiped the combat knife of it's gore and slid the small weapon into it's sheath. Her chameleon form with one hand hefted the Grunt's body and threw it into the corner with the other and in one motion grabbed her silenced smg right as Kai's cold voice sounded through her COM. "Gold-Two are the charges in place yet? I've already set mine in what seems to be their command area. Be on alert, they found some of their bodies and are actively searching the area."

_ I can't believe I acted like a scared little girl in front of him,of all people._ Cay's small camouflaged figure quickly darted out of the depository and emerged upon a small, but lush plateau which overlooked a massive jungle, far as the eye could see. "Affirmative Gold-One, I've placed charges inside what looked like a storage building for their rations. It should cover our exit and get the Covie's attention. Move on to primary objective?"

"Primary objective", which really meant "neutralize suspected minor Prophet coordinating Covenant efforts in the Inner Colonies." Cay watched as the planet's sun began to slowly creep out from the horizon, spilling shades of light pink and maroon across the morning sky. They were running out of time. Kai voice erupted from the COM, "Affirmative Gold-Two, but move cautiously. Those Brutes aren't all that happy they found a couple of they're buddies face down in their own gore. They got large patrols, I'd say six to eight hostiles per group so be careful. The Prophet," a TACMAP display of the Covenant base popped into her HUD, "should be in the large spire to the northeast relative to the compound's location. He obviously isn't in the command building, so my best bet is that his Brute guards moved him to that spire."

Cay clearly saw the spire, it was hard to miss. The massive structure stood across the valley atop another plateau from her though, and in between was a valley filled with angry aliens and their large base. She frowned as she examined the long winding path the Covenant erected from the bottom of the valley up to this plateau. It would be close-quarters and filled with the cretins. She pondered why the aliens put their food supplies so far away from the base, and realized maybe the Brutes tried to discourage the other species from trying to steal it. A slight grin appeared on her face as recalled the two Grunts she eliminated. Whatever their reason, they didn't do a good job. She keyed on her COM as she began the trek down the path back into the valley, "Kai what is the spire for?"

The Spartan removed the magnetic safeties on her back and retrieved her sniper rifle. _I won't need the smg if I can manage to pick them off at a distance._ "Well apparently they are some sort of teleportation devices on a large scale, meant to transport warships from other parts of Covenant space. Intel, before green-lighting the operation said these same spires were used during the Fall of Reach, to undercut UNSC space-borne defenses. Maybe the Covenant are trying to use this planet as a staging ground for a larger invasion?"

Cay was half-way down the path, and could clearly see the alien base was in an uproar. A quick zoom with her scope revealed the Brutes were shouting orders at frightened Grunts and Jackal; one captain even shot an unruly Jackal in the face with a spiker. "I don't think so, I mean the Covenant have already found Earth's location and have invaded it. Why set up a staging ground on a planet so many light-years away from Sol? It doesn't make sense, they're up to something."

Cay froze in place; not two hundred meters around a bend was a large patrol. She couldn't see them before because the turn in the path was covered by thick foliage. "Gold-One, I got contact with a large patrol headed straight for me," she could spot three large and hairy figures standing amongst a dozen squabbling Grunts, "_fifteen _hostiles, three Brutes and a dozen Grunts."

Kai's voice was riddled with angst, "Same here Gold-Two. Evade if possible, kill em' if not. I'll reestablish contact in a couple minutes, got a sticky situation over here too."

Cay could deal with sticky, but snags were a completely different game. _Dammit, their only getting closer. Need to take down those Brutes fast._ The Spartan quickly doubled back up the path, buying herself precious time to eliminate the trio of Brutes. In one fluid motion, she holstered the smg and took aim via the sniper rifle's Oracle scope. The angry and dysfunctional patrol made slow progress, and one frustrated Brute took his anger out on an unsuspecting Grunt; the behemoth snatched the little alien's throat and roared as the Grunt squealed and breathed erratically, suspended high into the air by the Brute's large arms. Cay immediately changed targets to the Brute in the back of the pack, sighted the cross-hair over it's oversized head and pulled the trigger.

The high velocity sabot round impacted the ape-like face of the Brute, and in a millisecond the beast's head exploded into a dense spray mixture of skull, brain tissue and blood. The second Brute had just enough time to raise it's spike rifle and drop the Grunt before another expertly placed shot dropped the alien in a shower of it's own gore. Cay shifted her aim to the front of the pack as the Grunts scattered, some actually tumbling off the path and crashing into thick foliage. The Spartan fired again, but narrowly missed as the Brute charged and barred its fangs; the alien was running on all fours. Cay hastily fired once more, and the round struck the Brute's massive hairy shoulder and exited the opposite direction. _That didn't even slow him down!_ She brought her smg to bear just as the beast collided into her body at full speed, slamming the human into the rocky path.

Both of the creature's large hands latched onto Cay's neck, and she could feel the alien squeeze full strength in an attempt to choke her. _Damn... need to... shoot the bastard._ The Brute snapped it's fangs at Cay's visor as it coughed spittle and blood onto the Spartan's helmet. Seeing stars, Cay scanned the area to try to find her smg; it was nowhere to be found. Just as the Brute squeezed harder, Cay launched a lighting-fast punch into the alien's face, momentarily disorienting it and buying her the precious time needed to unsheathe her combat knife, strapped securely on her thigh. With her right hand, Cay thrust with every bit of her augmented strength the blade into the Brute's temple. The weapon made a satisfying _thwack _and the knife lodged deep into the alien's head, killing it instantly.

_Great, now I got five hundred kilos of dead Brute bleedin' on me. Yeah, so much for picking them off at a distance_. With a combined upper body effort, Cay pushed the corpse off of her and got to her feet, albeit covered in the Brute's dark crimson blood. She looked all around and frowned, _and to top it off both my smg and rifle are nowhere to be found_. Her vision looked forwards, showing the Covenant base situated not far, and the winding path back down before her. _Those Grunts are going to set the alarm off when they return to the base_, Cay began a brisk run down the path and policed a spike rifle off one of the other dead Brutes. The SPI armor readjusted to the surroundings and cloaked the Spartan once more as Cay ran down the path and disappeared into the morning-lit jungles of the valley.


	4. Between a Rock and a Hard Place

Chapter Three- Between a Rock and a Hard Place

January 21, 2553

[HUMAN DESIGNATIONS]

Sanghelios, State of Antan, Antan Keep

Fleet Master Unone Nar 'Antan silently observed his land from his spacious quarters, for after all a Kaidon of his keep is the ultimate authority over all lands in his state. Still, Unone would be content with smaller quarters, but understood quite well the message he sent. He was Kaidon, and his word was law in Antan. Sangheili culture demanded nothing more and nothing less, and a culture the Fleet Master lived as law. Now however, Unone was a Fleet Master without a fleet, and a Kaidon of a state which was left struggling after major hostilities ended. The sangheili had always allowed the San'Shyuum utter freedom in regards to all things within the Covenant Empire in technology. Now without the Huragok to repair their vessels, and lesser species to tend to the fields, the sangheili were being defeated by a foe which could not be engaged. They were now a species without others to rely on for everything else besides warfare. The Fleet Master stood alone on his stone balcony, his gilded tunic faintly reflected the two moons, Qikost and Suban's, moonlight. Beyond his massive keep lay outstretched before his eyes endless fields, scattered settlements and Sanghelios' largest sea, Sang'Ium. Disconnected memories of childhood floated around in his conscious, fond times when he used to fish in Sang'Ium's red waters, and his time when he served in the Covenant fleet. _I was so zealous then, so determined to carry out the San'Shyuum's will. How blind I truly was, how blind we all were._

"So brother, what are you doing I wonder? Pondering how you have utterly failed our people? How you have become a puppet to the Arbiter?"

Unone slowly turned to face his enemies, a dozen heavily armed and armored sangheili. Their charcoal armor was lit ablaze by active plasma rifles and carbines and one stood in front of the pack, holding onto an active energy sword. The blade glowed an eerie light blue and illuminated the face of it's wielder; none other than the Fleet Master's brother. Unone took a couple more steps towards the assassins and took a long gaze into all of the sangheili; each one he had previously served with during the war with the humans. Finally, his stare fell upon his brother, "So, it has come to this I see Jarul. Before you attempt to slay me brother, may I request the identity of the Elder who hired your services?"

Jarul snarled, "Fool, you will not be alive long enough to execute him. I honestly cannot believe how far you have fallen. Disgraced Fleet Master, puppet to the Arbiter and now," Jarul took a step towards Unone, "now you will be assassinated by your own subordinates."

Unone took a long sigh then faced his brother, "You always were an impatient one Jarul but I had doubts you would attempt this. Now, I demand to know. Which. Elder. Now."

"Are you _serious_?" Giving me orders? Now I see why Zhal wanted you removed of your duties as Kaidon, you are arrogant even when you know your command and respect has whittled away. Brother," Jarul tossed Unone a deactivated sword hilt, "prepare yourself. Warriors," his head swiveled to meet the eleven assassins flanking him, "do not interfere, I can finish him myself."

The Fleet Master caught the hilt with his right hand and stood motionless, clutching onto the dormant weapon. "Brother, remember that promise all those years ago? Do you still have that memory, or has it been rusted by time just like everything else in your head?'

Unone stared into the hilt, and he could make out the small Forerunner glyphs etched along it's front and back. _Yes, how could I forget? We still served the San'Shyuum then...pathetic._

Covenant Holy City _High Charity_, 2545

Eight Years Ago...

"Hierarch please, anyone but _him. _I don't believe he is fully ready to face an opponent in battle yet. You must-"

The High Prophet's sickly colorless eyes looked into Unone's, completely undaunted by his pleas. He rose his weak hand with an air of authority and said, "Correct me if I'm wrong Shipmaster, but it sounded like you were trying to tell a _Hierarch_ what to do? Now I am certain a sangheili like yourself remembers his place within our Covenant, and I'm quite sure I do not have to remind one like yourself the penalty for insubordination, or _do _I?"

The Hierarch's anti-grav chair continued to float down the massive passage, as if beckoning Unone to follow. Numerous groups of Honor Guards followed behind the two, and off in the distance what sounded like cheering reverberated throughout the area. The distressed Shipmaster caught up to the San'Shyuum's side, "Noble Prophet of Truth, forgive my earlier arrogance, it will never happen again."

Truth didn't even care to face the sangheili, "no matter, I can understand your hesitation. After all, your brother will be... _displaying_ his aptitude as a warrior of the Covenant."

The Hierarch and Unone continued through a colossal arched hallway, and further down stood a massive opening, which the Shipmaster believed he could see some sort of balcony. Truth spoke again, "As I believe, your brother will face a rather... unique challenge for lack of a better term. A suitable enemy to test the prowess of your people."

"Hierarch, what enemy does he face? A heretic, a traitor?"

A disturbing grin appeared on the Hierarch's face, "Oh no, something much more _interesting, _Iassure you, even _you, _Shipmaster will be surprised this day. It will be a glorious testament to the sins of the heretic vermin that plague our god's galaxy. This day Shipmaster, we will see a Demon perish."

Unone's heart sunk, _a Demon? How..._ Unone said, "Hierarch, why did our forces simply not slay the Demon, but capture it?"

"Because Shipmaster, I _ordered _them to do so. On one of their infested colonies, our forces found the Demon incapacitated underneath some wreckage. These forces contacted me, I and told them to capture it alive."

Unone eyes expanded, "But why capture it and -"

"So the masses of the Covenant shall witness it's death by our hands. This Demon's corpse shall be hung by it's entrails and paraded throughout the streets of our glorious city. If your brother fails to slay the heretic, then you shall Shipmaster."

Unone stood paralyzed by Truth's words as he floated onto the balcony, and was greeted by thousands of roaring masses of the Covenant. The balcony outstretched from the building the two walked through, and was suspended close to a large circular pit nearly two hundred meters in diameter. Dozens of tiers closely separated were also suspended from large towers all around the pit, and each tier was host to thousands of every different species that formed the Covenant. Unone lazily strode over to Truth's side as nearly a hundred Honor Guards flanked them, each equipped with a long energy pike and glowing orange and crimson armor. Unone knew what this place was, _High Charity's _arena, it's only such location usually used for public executions or duels between conflicting parties. And he had only been here once before; duty as a Shipmaster in the Covenant Navy came first before such luxuries. However, not only was his brother destined to fight in the arena, but he was to fight a _Demon_, the human's most prized and skilled warriors. He himself had only seen one once before in combat; he hoped secretly he wouldn't have to face another. Truth's hands elevated above his head, his crimson robes hung from his arms. Within a few seconds, the crowds became silenced and the Hierarch began to speak, his voice amplified by an unseen force. "I welcome all of the faithful here today, all who would proclaim themselves loyal members of the Covenant. This arena is host to an event never yet seen in our great city, _High Charity._ Today, all of our eyes shall witness the death of a Demon!"

Unone had never seen so many of _High Charity_ at once, and the resulting cheering and roaring rung his ear drums relentlessly. _I wonder why the other Hierarchs are not here, interesting._ Truth once again rose his arms, his long skinny fingers seemed to stretch out to the heavens themselves. The energized crowds silenced and the High Prophet's voice once again reverberated throughout the arena. "The unclean humans have spawned these Demons in an attempt to misguide the faithful, to drive us off the course to eternal glory with the Forerunners. Try as they might, the Covenant will exterminate the vermin, and today we will all bear witness to a Demon's death! This monumental occasion will just be a precursor to events to come, but I promise to all of the loyal: our transcendence will come, and it will accelerate us to the gods!"

Once again, the crowds roared but this time Truth called out in unison with the cheering, "Bring out the combatants!"

The Shipmaster clung desperately to the forward railing and looked just in time to see the gate bellow the balcony ominously part. The first to enter to dusty pit was a cobalt-armored sangheili. In his right hand he held tightly to an energy sword, and in his left was a deactivated sword hilt. It was none other than his brother Jarul. Unone had tutored his young inexperienced kin in the way of swordsmanship and combat arms, but knew all too well the whelp hadn't been in true combat before. Still, he thought, _Jarul is a strong and determined sangheili. He might just have a chance. _Unone looked to his left and stole a glance at Truth, whose deep-set eyes watched as Jarul walked towards the center of the arena. _There's something more going on in your head, isn't there Hierarch? I wonder what your game is here? Maybe it has something to do with Regret and Mercy's absence? _As if reading Unone's mind, Truth's head slightly tilted right towards the Shipmaster, "Is there something on your mind, Shipmaster?"

Unone clenched his teeth, "Where are the other Hierarchs holy one?"

The High Prophet's gaze turned back at the pit, "They have other matters to attend to, _important _matters. Is that all Shipmaster?"

"Yes Hierarch."

"Good, ah here comes the Demon itself."

Unone hastily turned to the pit; the door across from the balcony parted and Unone grip on the railing tightened nervously. Two Jiralhanae emerged from the door and into _High Charity's _artificialsun, and between both of them was the figure of a human. Unone had engaged normal humans plenty of times; he preferred to leave with the shore parties to face his enemy on solid ground when the opportunity presented itself. Humans were a physically inferior species compared to the sangheili, he had numerous times crushed their bones with a punch or killed them with a single carbine round. Demons, on the other hand, were not so frail. Their mysterious olive-green armor was thick and durable, and the fiends themselves had strength that could overpower that of a sangheili. His last and only encounter with one left half the bones in his body completely shattered, he lost well over half of his blood and his entire shore party was slaughtered. Seeing one so close had the sangheili on edge, a fact the Hierarch seemed to enjoy as he subtly glanced over at Unone.

The Jiralhanae each firmly held the Demon between them; the human's armor was still intact save for it's helmet. Unone stared in disbelief, "Is that a female? I did not know there were female Demons."

Truth levitated closer to Unone, "It doesn't matter, the fiend will perish all the same like the rest of it's heretic species."

Unone didn't expect any to answer him, let alone the Hierarch. His gaze turned towards the human. It's face seemed an unnatural white color and it's long hair was nearly the same shade. A bloody gash was present from it's left eye to the chin, and it's red blood dripped onto the charred and beaten armor. The Jiralhanae suddenly tossed the human towards the center of the pit, turned and walked back as fast as they entered. Now, only his brother and the Demon were in the center of the arena and the armored human slowly got to her feet, not thirty meters from Jarul. The young sangheili tossed the dormant energy sword hilt at the human, and in a single lighting fast motion the Demon got it's bearings and caught the hilt in mid-air with a single outstretched arm. Truth, seemingly not addressing anyone, silently whispered, "now the fun begins."

Unone eyes fixated on the arena, his head spinning with possible outcomes of the duel. No matter what, his brother would not fall here today. That he would make sure of.


	5. A Prophet's Eulogy

Chapter Four- A Prophet's Eulogy

January 21, 2553

0720 Hours

Tuwan

There was only one way up to the spire: through an angry horde of aliens and Kai was as determined as ever to find the Prophet, quickly. Kai darted through the thick foliage of the jungles surrounding the Covenant compound at the base of the valley, using the camouflaging properties of the SPI armor to full effect. Rifle in hand, the Spartan proceeded to a relatively clear area of the jungle where the tree canopy didn't obscure his sight as badly; he could hear patrols of Covenant scouring the jungle looking for the murderous humans. Crouched, he looked up and could see the huge slab of overhanging rock that seemed to look down upon the valley, swinging vines and leaves made crisscrossing patterns with the sun's light. Atop the plateau, he could clearly make out the distinctive shape of the spire dominating the plateau's prominence, and could hear the characteristic wail of Banshee fliers patrolling it's skies. _Dammit, if we're going to kill that Prophet, now's the time to do it. _He observed possible routes to the plateau and could only see one, a wide path carved into the hillside that wound up the surface and to the spire. That, and the path led through a gauntlet of Covenant forces, which had set up barricades and numerous troops all along the route up. The Spartan keyed his team COM, "Gold-Two its time to blow that base. We're going to need the distraction; the entire Covenant Army is guarding the only way up to the plateau."

Kai's chameleon form scanned the perimeter for potential threats, his rifle quickly going back and forth though all he could hear were the guttural barks and squealing of Grunts and the roaring of countless Brutes. Suddenly the tall vegetation parted behind Kai to which he reacted instantly; the distinguishing stride of Cay appeared before his side. Cay's voice was surprisingly relaxed, "Sorry about the surprise but that base is in an uproar. So," she retrieved a small remote detonator from her pack, "I can't wait to see it go sky-high, it'll be like the good old times on Onyx."

Kai simply nodded, but remembered their training back on the secretive planet. _Yeah, Mendez was a crazy old geezer, but he made us into what we are. Him and the Lieutenant Commander..._ "Kai, are you seriously spacing-out again?"

The Spartan shook his head and grabbed his detonator as well, a small thing half the size of his palm. "On the count of three, three...two...one... mark!"

In unison, the Spartans activated the C-12 "blow packs" they strategically placed all around the Covenant base, six in total. Normally, _one _was enough to blast through meters of Titanium-A battle-plate on UNSC capital ships, and could easily disable it. The resulting explosion and concussive force shook Kai's teeth, and the jungle floor quaked from the stress of the compound blast. What looked like a wave of dust rushed through the jungle, and particles from evaporated plasma drifted around the area, silently floating towards the ground. "Damn, that was a lot stronger than I thought it would be."

Kai looked at Cay, "That's because their munitions were all stored inside the base's perimeter, and I just so happened to place a charge in the storage area."

Both nodded in agreement and slowly crept from the treeline to see the damage. Where there had once been a Covenant base was simply a massive blackened crater. The jungle around the compound was utterly flattened by the concussion wave, and scores were set ablaze by secondary plasma explosions. A trio of long smoke plumes ascended from the crater, leaving the center of the valley a lifeless black scar. It wasn't recognizable, even more so to the groups of aliens running down from the plateau-path, their faces distorted by a mixture of shock, anger and discontent. "Cay now!"

The humans ran full sprint from the treeline towards the beginning of the path up to the plateau. Kai's battle rifle spat a three-round burst of AP rounds, nearly taking the head off a surprised Brute. Cay unleashed a unrelenting volley of red-hot spikes from the spike rifle, the molten projectiles impaled an unsuspecting group of Grunts. One spike lodged into one of the stout little creatures' methane tanks, causing a chain reaction explosion which quickly eliminated the first guards. Kai swiftly leaped over the aliens' barricades and shot up the path, with Cay in close pursuit. "Don't stop, we need to kill that Prophet now!"

Overhead, a pair of Banshees descended on the humans, their green-tinted sheen's were illuminated in the morning sun. Kai charged full speed into another barricade checkpoint and pushed his body to the limit; he could feel his quadriceps strain from the pressure from running up-hill. The Spartan unleashed a barrage of rifle rounds into a stagnant group of Jackals caught unawares; their forward shields weren't facing the human. The bullets tore into the exposed flesh of the aliens and purple gore splattered Kai's armor. Behind him, the strange report of Cay's spike rifle sounded behind him, the projectiles impacted the Banshee's chitinous armor. However both fliers released twin bolts of green energy that raced towards the Spartans. Kai reacted just in time as the fuel rod blasts narrowly missed him, but waves of pressure smacked into him from all sides. The human swiftly released his spent magazine and slammed a fresh one into the battle rifle and could see the Banshees turning to make another strafe at the Spartans. "Cay we're almost to the spire! Keep running, don't stop no matter what!"

Kai transitioned into a jump mid-sprint and crashed through numerous Grunts and Jackals, his rifle firing non-stop as the rounds tore into flesh and bone, alien blood sprayed in every direction. He could feel countless tendons and muscles tear and snap, and his side felt as if it were literally melting. But he did not stop, and just as he reached the flat surface of the plateau, the Banshees once again unleashed their payload of plasma weaponry. This time, a blast of plasma erupted at his flank and his front, and the compound pressure waves and heat ripped through him. He screamed as he could hear his left arm _snap!_ and he coughed blood, smearing his visor. The colossal spire was not four hundred meters away; it blurred as electric blue pulses rushed through it. The Spartan stumbled forwards, his pace between a run and a brisk jog. He yelled into the COM, voice trying to subdue the agony that gripped him, "Cay... get to the spire! We're almost there!"

Kai didn't look back but he could hear the Banshee's whine as they attempted another pass, weapons charging. The base of the spire had a narrow opening, and just as he entered dozens of plasma bolts impacted behind him and he narrowly escaped their weapons. _Now, to find that Prophet._ The interior was dimly lit save for a few wall mounted lights. In the center of the installation was a pulsating semitransparent beam of energy; an anti-gravity lift to the top of the tower. Kai, vision blurry and his left arm bent at an awkward angle stumbled into the beam and he could feel the lift's forces pluck him off the ground.

The Spartan scanned every direction as he was pulled up through the beam, suspended nearly a kilometer off the surface and to the top of the spire. From this height, he could see dozens of Banshees fly in confused circles over the crater, some of them concealed by the smoke plumes emanating from the damaged valley. His blood ran cold when he could find no trace of Cay and attempted a COM up-link. "Gold-Two, do you... read me? Cay, where are you!"

He was answered by a long hiss of static just as he entered the top of the spire. The interior was ominous, the only light came from outside a single opening behind the "entrance". Kai's boots finally touched the slick purple metal. A voice lofted inside the small interior, which immediately caused the Spartan to turn, his rifle leveled with a single arm. A small room, which looked like a control center for the spire was elevated slightly in comparison to the rest of the interior and from there sat a curious being. The alien was clearly frail and wizened and sat upon an anti-grav chair, which hovered a meter off the floor. The being wore light silver robes and a small silver headdress adorned with a single holographic ring at it's center. Kai clenched his teeth, _there you are. I found you Prophet. _Kai couldn't make out what the ancient Prophet was saying, but the language sounded intricate and flowed harmoniously. For whatever reason, the alien ignored the Spartan and continued its chanting, with arms stretched and eyes closed. Kai slowly stumbled out of the lift area, and walked along a ramp which led to the control center. The human quickly darted from the ramp into the control room to find the Prophet silently sitting in it's chair, relaxed and staring at Kai directly into his visor. The battle rifle had a consistent tremble as Kai began to loose consciousness aiming at the alien. The Prophet began to speak near-perfect English in an air of authority, "ah here comes a Demon, how it approaches me! I wonder human, I wonder what you have endured to reach me here in my spire?"

_Endured? What the hell is this guy thinking? _"So your a Prophet then, leaders of the Covenant. I admit I've never actually got to meet one myself," the Spartan coughed and more blood smeared his dented visor, "can't wait to kill you."

The unsettling whine of Banshees reverberated the spire and the Prophet seemed unfazed by Kai's words. "The Covenant? Our once glorious Covenant, a union of like-minded faithful bound together by the Writ of Union. So full of hate were our eyes that none of us could see. Our war would yield countless dead but never victory. So let us cast arms aside and like discard our wrath. Thou, in faith, will keep us safe whilst we find the path."

Kai cocked his head quizzically at the Prophet as it continued the sermon over and over again in English. Mid-sermon, Kai interrupted, "Once glorious? What happened to your so called "Glorious Covenant?"

The Prophet shook his head erratically and his voice began disturbed, "The Covenant! It has been destroyed by the humans and the sangheili! And now, now an even greater threat to our ascendance has emerged!"

"Wait, the war, is it over?"

The Prophet yelped in a disturbing tone, "Of course Demon! You and your heretic allies have slain the Hierarchs and stopped the holy transcendence of the Great Journey! Now the Covenant is no more! No, no, no! You haven't stopped our godhood, only _delayed _the inevitable! Yes, that's right! We, the San'Shyuum will ascend! All the while," the being began to chuckle deviously, "the scourge will consume you heretics and infidels and we will be saved!"

Kai's already damaged head began to spin, _the war's over? Did we already win or is this thing just lost it's mind?_ The Spartan took a cautious step forward, the battle rifle's barrel mere meters from its aged and loose face. "What scourge are you talking about?"

The deranged Prophet sprang from the chair, eyes wide with a primal fury. Kai fired a single burst into it's chest and the alien collapsed to the floor, it's wound forming a pool of red blood. It began to speak, it's voice distorted from the wound, "you... all of you will be consumed. Yes... and we shall begin our Journey, to live amongst the gods..."

Kai took another step towards the alien, lowered his rifle and fired another burst into the Prophet, ending its life. The Spartan managed to look at his rifle's ammunition counter, which read: 00 in ghostly blue characters before blacking out and collapsing onto the metal floor.


	6. Words of Farewell

Chapter Five- Words of Farewell

January 22, 2553

0135 Hours

Tuwan

Had their luck finally run dry? Three months of narrowly escaping ambushes, traps and Covenant forces, had it caught up? Cay felt a burning pulse shoot up her leg, _no I'm still very much alive. Banshee almost did me in back there._ The soft patter of rain pinged off of her armor, and she came to the realization the photo-reactive panels weren't working. She was no longer camouflaged. Cay attempted to move her gauntlet and her fingers sunk deep into the wet mud of the plateau, softened by the continuous downpour. The Spartan rolled onto her back, covered in mud and watched a bolt of lightening streak across the black sky, and the raindrops that harmlessly dropped onto her visor. From her prone position she could see the spire not far away and still active as it's anti-gravity beam illuminated the area in a wispy blue. _Kai, you better have killed that Prophet. Only excuse for leaving me in the mud overnight._ The Spartan attempted to stand but her right leg gave out and she collapsed back into the mud with a splash. _Not a single Covie in sight? Wonder what happened? Well, I'm not going far with a fucked up leg. So much for augmentations. _Cay once more attempted to get to her feet, but this time put all of her weight on her left leg.

The Spartan wearily staggered through the torrent of rain as multiple streaks of lightening and accompanying thunder boomed across the Tuwan night. Cay stumbled into the wreckage of a downed Banshee, and managed a slight grin as the fuselage was riddled with spikes. _One of em' must have got a lucky hit, maybe took out the pilot or destroyed the anti-gravity generator. _With a single hand she lifted the charred top of the flier and saw the dead pilot, a Brute with a single spike lodged into it's forehead. _That answers that. _Cay finally found the base of the spire and entered into a the pitch-black interior, save for the meager light created by the lift. Hopping one leg and using the walls for support, Cay entered the grav beam, felt her body suspend for a second before being lifted high into the sky.

Cay had to admit to herself; the anti-gravity felt good on her broken leg by taking the stresses of of it as she flew up into the top and finally arriving inside after a relatively short journey. Once again, there were no active lighting systems inside the interior, and besides illumination from the lift, the only other source of light came from the flashes of lightening that tore across the sky. Cay, possessing no firearms drew her combat knife and struggled to move, using the walls to approach the control room of the spire. The Spartan saw the crumpled body of an alien in pool of it's own blood, and upon closer examination it was the Prophet they had been tracking down for three months on Tuwan. Then she realized not five meters away was the motionless form of a Spartan equipped with SPI armor. "Kai! Kai get up!"

Cay hobbled over to his prone form and fell to both knees, which she regretted after the fact from the pain. She gritted her teeth after seeing the extent of the damage he had sustained. His left arm was completely broken, a good portion of his hip area was charred and blackened, and the jagged pieces of armor gave way to exposed and bloodied skin. Numerous sections of the armor had been melted and boiled away from extreme heat and the visor of his helmet was cracked and dented in. Cay brought up her TEAMBIO on the HUD, which showed Kai was still alive but unconscious. His heart rate however, was extremely slow. The Spartan checked his weapons; the battle rifle's magazine was empty, however he still possessed a silenced sub-machine gun and a spare mag. Cay sheathed her knife and policed the smg.

Cay removed her beaten helmet and shook Kai, "Kai get the hell up! Come on, we need to signal for evac. Remember the nifty little transmitter Beta-5 gave us? C'mon Spartan get up!"

Relief washed over her as a dry cough made its way from Kai and his head began to slightly move until it stopped and looked at Cay. "Sorry but I had to take a quick nap. You know planting charges, evading violent aliens, blowing up their base and eliminating their leader _deserves _some shut-eye."

Cay simply rolled her eyes, "funny, but let's not forget _my _part in all this."

Kai struggled as sat up against the wall and removed his helmet with his right arm, with his left hanging in an awkward position. His faced was smeared with dried blood, and his one bruise had multiplied into several painful contusions. The Spartan took one look at his devastated helmet and tossed it. "Useless, HUD's broken and it's covered in blood anyways. But you know," his face scanned the darkened interior, "we can't leave this spire here operational. Who knows where it connects to."

Cay reclined next to him, the two battered Spartan sat in the dark corridor. "Well we completed our mission on this world. I wonder where all the rest of the Covies went. There was a good amount of Banshees before I lost consciousness, and there had to be some surviving patrols and outposts. I mean, why didn't they try to protect-"

Kai stared at her confused, "protect? You mean the Prophet?"

"You said these spires can teleport large amounts of material, even capital ships correct? Then maybe the Covies retreated on a ship. I'm just guessing, but maybe they believed our elimination of material and outposts over the past few months was a larger scale attack and they bugged out?"

Kai shook his head, "no I think I know why. Before I killed our friend over there," he gestured to the dead Prophet, "he said the Covenant have been defeated. That the war is over. In that case, maybe these remnants were simply trying to leave to their own systems after learning they lost. I think this little base we destroyed was a rally point for retreat, and we disrupted their operation. Since we've had no contact with Command for months now, we thought the war was still going on. Maybe this Prophet here was leading the retreat efforts."

Cay settled uneasily in her armor, "if that's the case, its about time we leave Tuwan. I still have our long-distance SATCOM link-up unit. You still got the spare C-12?"

Kai's hand scrounged through his utility pack and retrieved the shaped charge and shook it sarcastically between the two. Cay's lips formed into a devious grin as they both assisted each other up.

Two figures stood amongst the rainswept surface of the plateau and watched as a new illumination lit up the night sky, brighter than any bolt of lightening. As Kai observed the spire detonate into every shade of blue, his heart became heavy from the Prophet words. _Consumed? Consumed by what? _He had a inextinguishable feeling that the victory over the Covenant would be short lived, and whatever the Prophet had meant, it was telling the truth.


	7. Section Zero

Chapter Six- Section 0

January 29, 2553

1346 Hours

UNSC _Point of No Return_

In geosynchronous orbit around Luna, Sol

Lieutenant Fields gently rubbed his temples with a mild degree of nervousness. Anyone who has heard about the UNSC's most secretive and nonexistent ship in service is either high up in ONI's complex hierarchy, or no longer able to talk about it. But he was about to step _inside _it. A stoic and no-nonsense ONI agent escorted the young Lieutenant off his shuttle, and onto the "hanger" of the _Point of No Return. _Fields ran a hand through his unkempt black hair and let out a single long whistle. He had been on a prowler before, the UNSC _Trojan Horse_ and seen it's supposed hanger bay. A very small, cramped interior with only enough space to dock one or two shuttles at once. The Lieutenant shook his head as he followed the agent past numerous individual docking stations and modules. _Normal prowlers don't have the accommodations to fit a squadron of Longsword interceptors or a fleet of Pelicans. No, the Point is in a league of it's own. Yeah, prowler my ass. _Fields took one last appreciative panorama of the oversized hanger and followed the agent through a series of blast doors.

Normally, UNSC prowlers were used for stealthy intelligence gathering into hostile territory and almost never attempted to leave hiding. But as Fields walked through numerous halls, he couldn't help but wonder what the _ Point _actually did. It survived the Covenant War, unlike the large majority of the prowlers. He knew the massive stealth vessel served as a wartime HQ for the Office of Naval Intelligence's more secretive spooks, but he wondered what it's duty was _now. _And knowing ONI and what it stood for, Fields felt a chill roll down his spine. He was one of the younger generations to serve in the war against the Covenant, but it was all he knew because he was born in the era. At the age of eighteen and fresh from high school back on Earth, he enlisted in Officer Candidate School in Luna's Naval base. Apparently, the young Fields impressed enough senior brass during OCS to be offered a very special spot in humanity's shadiest little group, none other than ONI Section One, the intelligence division. Fields only managed to participate during the last couple of years of the war, but during his service aboard the _Trojan Horse_ he witnessed his fair share of orbital plasma bombardment colloquially known as "glassing", and the murder of millions by Covenant hands. The abrupt stern voice of the agent caught him off guard, "Lieutenant proceed through this hall and you will encounter an identification checkpoint. Follow all instructions and you will receive further orders from there."

The man left Fields facing a long stainless-steel hallway all colored a uniform white. The Lieutenant strode down the hall, opened a conspicuous door and entered a room filled with security checkpoints and at the very end was another door, however this one had a large **WARNING **stenciled next to it, and underneath read multiple commands and regulations. A crisp and eager voice startled him, "welcome Lieutenant Anthony G. Fields to the UNSC _Point of No Return. _Please complete the required identification procedures to gain access to the ship's secure quarters. You will receive further instructions upon gaining clearance."

Fields took a long stretch in his dress uniform, completed it with a sigh and stepped up to the checkpoint. He grumbled as everything from DNA, retinal and facial scans all confirmed what he knew: he was Lieutenant Anthony G. Fields. Finally, the secure blast door parted with a _hiss_ and revealed a strikingly normal looking room to which he entered immediately. The door snapped shut behind him as he observed the place. The room was mostly white and gray except for the large black round table in the center and a few pedestals from which an AI could materialize it's "body". Suddenly one of the pedestals clicked on and a digital avatar quickly materialized from it. Fields took a step towards it before it began to speak. "If you are wondering what I am let me introduce myself. I am MIL AI 1901 Wallace, at your service."

The Lieutenant cocked an eyebrow at the AI's chosen form and name. Obviously he chose William Wallace, famous Scottish knight who fought in Scotland's Independence wars of his time. His avatar was "clothed" in the traditional Gaelic warrior tunic of the 13th century and spoke in a strong discernible Scottish accent. _So this is the Point's current smart AI? Or just one of the many?_ Wallace waved a holographic sword at Fields and said, "you are present in what ONI dubs the "Odin's Eye", essentially a Faraday cage that blocks all electronic signals that would attempt to enter or escape this room. It is used for classified meetings of ONI personnel or high-value debriefings. You Lieutenant are one of the few souls to ever set foot in the Eye."

Fields pulled out a chair from the large table and lazily sat down and crossed his arms, looking directly at Wallace. "So why did ONI pull me off my current duty to enter the room that doesn't exist on a ship that doesn't exist to talk to a high-spirited AI that probably doesn't officially exist?"

The sarcastic tone looked like it hit Wallace as if it were enemy arrows striking him. "I'm not the one to answer all your questions boy, just here to keep you nice and comfy."

The Lieutenant rolled his eyes and reclined back in the chair, unaware until the last moment that someone stood behind him, standing by the entrance. Wallace began a hearty laugh watching Fields nearly fall backwards and recklessly regain his balance. Fields tried to ignore the AI as he took a long look at the most recent arrival into Odin's Eye. The woman was obviously military; Fields guessed she was not much older than he was but had seen more action. She wore a Marine Corps dress uniform, adorned with numerous campaign ribbons and polished medals. A long faded scar ran from her temple to her full lips, and her emerald eyes had the stare Fields had seen on so many faces after the war. The marine took a quick glance at him then promptly walked over to the opposite side of the table and sat cross-legged, her shoulder-length ruby hair settled over her neatly-pressed uniform. He squinted and made out the shoulder patch of an Orbital Drop Shock Trooper, known as the Helljumpers amongst the military for their insertion from an orbiting craft into an atmosphere. The ODST quietly sat, eyes closed and seemingly ignoring the chaos she entered into. Fields examined her uniform more closely and made out the single silver bar which signified her as a First Lieutenant in the Corps, roughly equivalent to his own rank. He nearly jumped out of his seat when she opened one eye and said in a inquisitive tone, "something you need Lieutenant?"

Fields took a long gulp and tried to form words, "uh...no just looking at your," his eyes darted away from her chest, "uniform."

The look on her face didn't seem convinced of Fields' sincerity and she rubbed both of her eyes. "Whatever."

Fields, caught off-guard tried to make small talk and took a breath but was cut off the opportunity by Wallace, who's obnoxious voice filled the room. "Welcome ma'am to Odin's Eye, the _Point's _personal little Faraday cage for all those clandestine meetings you don't want anyone to hear about."

The ODST responded fast, "so we have any more guests coming? Oh and you never told me your name."

Fields grumbled as the AI took a long bow, "I am MIL AI 1901, but you can just call me Wallace for short."

Unless he had known better, Wallace's sing-song speech tried to convey a sense of flirtation. The Lieutenant simply yawned and reclined back into his seat the way he was before the ODST entered the Eye. The AI's expression turned into a strange look of confusion and he asked, "You don't wish to know anything else?"

"Yeah I asked are we it or are some more coming?"

Wallace let loose another hearty laugh and said, "why of course! If this data is accurate and it always is I'd the next-"

The AI stopped mid-sentence as the secure door hissed open and another stepped into the clean white floor of the Eye. Fields' jaw dropped as his ice colored eyes stared upon the next curious guest. This woman was at least a foot taller than the Lieutenant, which was saying a great deal as he was no meager height; he was six foot three. Her skin was almost an unnatural snow hue, and her long flowing hair was about the same shade. The woman had piercing gray eyes and evidence of multiple scars all along her face. Her simple, unadorned Navy uniform slacked when she took long strides towards the table; for some reason Fields thought he could make out an abnormal gait in her stride, as if she was coming off a serious injury. Fields could see her biceps bulge as she snapped a crisp salute directed at the Lieutenant; obviously he outranked the giant standing in front of him. An invisible hand tugged Fields out of his seat as he returned the gesture and truly felt inferior in the presence of the well-built and tall woman looking at him. The Lieutenant could make out the insignia of a Senior Chief Petty Officer attached to her uniform. Fields sat down without any effort wasted as the SCPO quietly and efficiently took a seat to his right, directly across from the ODST. _Damn these two look like tough-as-nails women, I feel out of my league here. _Just as he shot a quick glance to his right, the door hissed open again, and the individual who walked in was very different than any of them. Maybe it had to do with the fact all of them were _human_.

The massive and angular bulk of what could only be an Elite stepped into the Eye; his crimson armor shaded the white floor in splashes of pink. The alien's saurian face observed the humans with a degree of suspicion; it's strange mandibles were sealed tight. He was even larger than the massive pale woman that just walked in minutes ago, a feat Fields didn't think possible. The Elite was obviously out of his element as he slowly walked up to the table, the alien's awkward cloven boots clang against the polished floor. Fields stole glances from the others sitting at the table; Miss ODST's face seemed ready to explode and the expression on her face was undeniable. The massive pale woman to Fields' right maintained a clam demeanor but he could see it on her face too, it was simply more subtle. _This thing is an enemy. What is it doing on this ship? _A tension filled silence befell the Eye as the Elite stood as defiant-looking as it could trying to ignore three humans whose eyes were filled with distrust, suspicion and most of all: hate. Finally Wallace came to the rescue, his red-tinted Gaelic warrior avatar materialized on a pedestal adjacent to the Elite. "Ah yes our most... _different _addition to this little party. Welcome Field Major to Odin's Eye."

The Elite scoffed at the human construct to his left and his tight-sealed mandibles opened, forming rough English. "Yes, after at least a dozen different screenings and checkpoints. I get the feeling I'm not too welcome on your vessel."

The red-haired ODST blurted out, "wonder why that is?"

The Major with one massive hand grabbed hold of the human chair, tested it strength and sat down, smartly far away from any of the seething humans around him. The alien's deep voice said, "if you must know human, I did not participate in your conflict with the Covenant. Though I doubt you will care."

The ODST's hands tightened into strong fists and Fields could tell she was about to burst. "Didn't _participate? _Are you trying to be funny or something? Do you know how many people you and your hinge-head "warriors" murdered? If I had my sidearm I would seriously blow your stupid little brain out of it's head."

The Elite nonchalantly removed it's helmet and sighed, the aliens' bare head had numerous scars. "Human, I live for combat and the sangheili battle code. I will destroy my enemies without mercy or regret for my actions. However, I will say again I did not fight in the war, in fact I was not even a part of the Covenant. I saw what the conflict was: the Prophets goading my people into a war all the while leading them like a pet with lies and mistrust. They used my people and then discarded them when we started asking questions and became inconvenient, all in favor for the Jiralhanae, Brutes. It is no excuse for the majority of sangheili you killed your kind, but just know the reasons human."

The ODST grunted loudly and spoke, "Wallace what are we waiting for exactly?"

The AI seemed to deliberately wait to respond before answering, "we are waiting... no longer."

The doors once again slid open, and entered another, this one a human. The man wore a tight Army uniform, with the single star insignia of a Brigadier General. Although he had signs of age, graying at the temples and wrinkles permeating his tanned skin he still had a strong physique and stride. All of the present humans immediately rose and saluted, to which the man returned and in a confident tone said, "at ease." The Elite remained seated, but subtly nodded to the Brigadier.

He took a seat at the end of the table so he could see all four of the current members that were seated. "I am Brigadier General Amos Castle, and you are all here because you will all be folded into a new unit with the Office of Naval Intelligence."

The Elite quietly scratched his mandible, contented as the huge pale woman addressed the general. "Sir permission to speak freely?"

Castle looked wearily into the woman's gray eyes, "I know what you are going to ask SCPO but this assignment supersedes any assignment or posting. That even includes the Spartan deployment."

Fields smacked himself in the head mentally for not seeing it earlier. _What else could this woman be? Why didn't I see that before? Only Spartans are that massive. _Fields took a quick glance at the Spartan; her face couldn't hide the discontent written all over. She simply nodded and Castle continued, "as I stated earlier, ONI has directed for the creation of a new unit, specifically a Special Detachment Group. All of you will be folded in Section Zero to accomplish this, and as you can see it's members need to be," his eyes drifted in the Field Major's general area, "varied."

Fields train of though stumbled over itself, _Section Zero? I've never even heard of it. Wonder what could be going on here. _Castle continued, "Section Zero isn't well known, and it's activities aren't even brought to the attention of most of the officers in ONI. Simply put, Section 0 is a kind of internal affairs division, ONI's own watchdog. It tracks and eliminates illegal or unauthorized programs or illicit use of resources within both ONI and the UNSC. Because of the Covenant War, use of Zero's capacities waned as our attention was on defeating the Covenant, not seeking out unsanctioned work and projects. But now, this capability is needed again. As such we need the ability to perform these ops once more, and only Section 0 is authorized to execute them."

Wallace's avatar materialized on the pedestal adjacent to Castle, his stance having a strange holographic sense of pride. "As you know, this is Wallace, a fifth-generation smart Artificial Intelligence programmed with the latest ONI data packages and technology, cutting edge. As such, he will be assigned to the newly formed Special Detachment Group Zeta, which will consist of him and each of you, if you so choose."

Castle ran his fingers through his graying hair and sucked in a deep breath. "New ONI directive, straight down from the top. Each of you were hand-picked and selected for differing reasons, however you have a choice. You are not being forced into this and can you walk away, permanently. If you reject this, you will be redirected back to wherever it was you came. In fact, if you wish you can leave immediately and never hear another word about this again. This is your one and only chance, speak now or you will be officially folded into ONI Section Zero SDG."

Fields ran his words through his mind like a sponge soaking up the last drips of water. _So ONI needs their investigations unit back to full strength. Why the hell did they select me? I could see needing a Spartan, an ODST an even a split-jaw alien. But why me? _Fields took one long and continuous breath, wiped his forehead and looked straight at Castle. "Sir permission to speak freely?"

Castle gave him a swift nod, as if expecting the Lieutenant to ask. "Sir I understand the need for a Spartan because of their obvious capabilities. Same goes for an ODST and I can understand even requiring an Elite," the Field Major snarled in his direction, "a _sangheili._ But, I don't quite understand why I'm here. I mean I'm not all that special and probably the least qualified here."

The Brigadier General gave Fields a stern look, as if trying to figure out what he really meant. "Wallace, explain the criteria to the Lieutenant here please."

Wallace took a double take at Castle and then took a polite bow. "Of course sir. ONI specified what they were looking for in extremely great detail, however there were also the intangibles. Lieutenant Fields, you served aboard a prowler, the UNSC _Trojan Horse _correct? You graduated OCS Luna in 2549 and were transferred to ONI Section One and served as a bridge junior officer; you were the navigation officer. You only participated for three years in the war, but during your service on _Trojan Horse_ you were attached to multiple battle groups in the Fleet defending the Inner Colonies. And, as you probably know, it didn't go well."

_Yeah, it's like a trip down memory lane today. _The AI continued, "Every single battle during your service the _Trojan Horse _took part in were losses. The Battle of the Tundra Moons, the Raid on Helvas XII, and many others. Usually the battle-groups the prowler was assigned to were completely annihilated with almost no survivors. A dozen Inner Colonies glassed, millions murdered from Covenant plasma bombardment. But your most prominent confrontation came in early 2552, when the _Trojan Horse _was boarded by Covenant interdiction forces, ambushing the vessel as it exited slipspace. The commanding officer of the _Trojan Horse _Commander Lesinsky experienced a nervous breakdown as the Covenant boarded, and didn't enact the Cole Protocol as required. You, Lieutenant Fields _did, _at the last minute before the boarders entered the bridge and killed the entire command crew. You were hit by plasma and incapacitated; they believed you dead. The _Trojan Horse, _however was aided by a small battle-group of UNSC frigates patrolling that particular sector of space. The Covenant were eliminated, yet almost all two hundred members of the prowler were KIA; you were the only survivor."

_Yeah, plasma burns can be treated but that experience will never leave me. Had to spend six months of emergency medical leave on Reach; transferred to Earth's prowler division just before the Fall._ Castle took over from there, "your CSV might not have the years behind it Lieutenant, however as far as I'm concerned its one of the most distinguished I've seen in my time in ONI. You keep your cool, even in situations that are hopeless as evidenced by your reaction when the Covenant boarded the _Trojan Horse, _exactly the kind of person I need in SDG."

Fields wiped a bead of sweat on his forehead and responded, "thank you sir, for this opportunity."

Castle stood out of his chair and crossed his arms behind his back; rows of campaign ribbons and decorations were pronounced on his uniform. "So, none of you want to leave then?"

Fields took a quick peek at everyone seated at the table; the Spartan's expression clenched into an indiscernible stoic look, the Field Major tried to sit as comfortably as he could in the human chair and the ODST's face gleaned with excitement. The Lieutenant quickly glanced over at Wallace's pedestal; the AI was sharpening it's sword with a countenance Fields could only describe as focus. Castle's head scanned the table and the veteran Brigadier General leaned in closer to the assorted group. "Welcome to SDG Zeta, now let's get to work."


	8. Out of the Frying Pan

Chapter Seven- Out of the Frying Pan...

Covenant Holy City _High Charity_

Year 2545, Eight Years Ago

Unone dared not to question the High Prophet's will, but seriously doubted his intent. _What reason Hierarch do you allow this? Why not execute the Demon? Why must my own kin partake in this duel; he has not even fought in a real battle, unlike this human. _Unone's grip on the railing of the balcony tightened to a death-grip as he watched helplessly as his brother Jarul prepared to face the Demon in sword combat. Truth's unmistakeable regal voice began to speak, seemingly directed at the distressed sangheili. "Is something troubling you Shipmaster? I would pay attention to the arena if I were you."

Unone's eyes instantly fixated on the arena pit and watched just in time to see the Demon activate it's energy sword and prepare for Jarul's attack. _This is sacrilege! How can the Hierarch allow an unclean Demon to wield our weapons, weapons that came from our god's gifts? _Unone marshaled the will to bring his thoughts to words and began to speak. "Hierarch, why is the Demon allowed use of our weapons? A blade only permitted for use by the sangheili, your noble guardians."

Truth scowled at the Shipmaster, his furrows and globules of skin distorted. "Shipmaster once the Demon is slain you will be allowed to cleanse the weapon of it's filth. However this duel would not be much of a battle worth watching if the human was unarmed. Besides, this will be much-needed experience for your brother, a warrior who has just taken his vows of loyalty and hasn't slain humans yet. Our Covenant needs to see that Demons can be dealt with just as easily as their pitiful fleets and their tainted worlds."

Unone took one arduous look into Truth's eyes and saw a glint of... something. Mischievousness? Brooding? _No Hierarch, you do not care about my brother or me. Am I really questioning the Holy One? _Truth's frail head stayed transfixed on the arena, his swallow eye sockets and pale yellow eyes didn't seem to move. _Maybe I am after all. _The resonant clang of two energy swords clashing snapped Unone out of his brooding over Truth, and a quick glance revealed Jarul had engaged the Demon. Their blades created an aurora of blue energy as the smashed into each other; Jarul was much larger in frame than the armored human but the Demon was swift in it's movements. The crowds of Covenant of the adjacent tiers howled and roared with each successive parry by the two combatants as if this was an ancient Roman coliseum gladiatorial match. The human's white mane of hair flowed effortlessly with her movements, the result of a near-decade of grueling training. Unone hadn't realized he was perspiring, beads of sweat dripped down his face as he clung to the balcony rails. Abruptly, the Demon struck Jarul with a lightning fast strike, a flash of green power armor and energy blade. The young sangheili brought his sword to bear just in time; the Demon's attack sent him careening into the far wall to the right of the arena with a definite _smash!_

As if Jarul's impact awoke beasts in a deep slumber, the observer's tier above him became rowdy, particularly a pack of Jiralhanae who bellowed at the sangheili. "You imbecile! Can you not finish the human! We came to see the Demon suffer not this endless charade of battle!"

Unone clenched his mandibles together and could feel his teeth grit. Once Jiralhanae, for whatever reason got in an uproar there was hardly anything one could do to halt them. Aside from killing the brutish creatures of course. A gargantuan Jiralhanae pushed his way to the front of the pack, covered in thick mattes of silver fur. The beast towered over his brethren and slung over his shoulder was a massive ebony hammer. Even from this distance, Unone could see the weapon's staggering dimensions. The head of the hammer was nearly the size of an Unggoy and a long menacing blade scythed it's way from the opposite side down the frame of the weapon. This Jiralhanae was clearly the Chieftain of it's pack, and it definitely wasn't in a good mood. Jarul labored to get to his feet, his motions indicative of a injury; but the Demon didn't have that problem and closed the distance between them, sword ready for the killing blow. Unone's eyes widened and he gripped the railing so tight he could feel it give underneath his pressure. "Jarul get up! The Demon is nearly upon you!", and then things moved quickly from there.

The Shipmaster leaped from the balcony, his cloudy combat harness glimmered in the artificial light of _High Charity. _Combined with the substantial weight and distance of the fall, he landed with a loud _thud _and Unone could feel the shock jolt up his body. He scanned to the right; the human would reach Jarul before he could come to his brother's aid. The sangheili sprinted with all the strength he could muster, his elongated legs moved in concert with his flailing arms as he attempted to reach his kin in time. "Brother! Get to your feet!"

Then, quite suddenly a wave of force barreled into the desperate Shipmaster. He felt as if, for a split moment _High Charity's _gravity systems failed and he was in a state of free-fall off the dusty ground of the arena pit. A wave of neon blue energy washed over him and then a sucker punch struck him in the abdomen, took all of the air out of him, and then finally he crashed into the ground in a dust-covered heap. _What... was that? _The Shipmaster blinked and found he was staring up at the Holy City's perpetual ceiling, illuminated by countless lights and the occasional passing freighter. It gave Unone of the cavernous openings he stumbled into back during his childhood back on Sanghelios. Pushing away distant memories of his early adventures in Antan, he attempted to rise. Even through blurry vision, it was impossible to mistake the massive furry bulk that was a Jiralhanae. Or rather _multiple _Jiralhanae. He recognized the one the dominated his field of vision, the Chieftain with a impossibly large hammer which was now imbedded into the arena's dirt ground. The head of the hammer left a human-sized chunk from the floor missing, and exposed the blue-purple metal beneath. Four mud-colored Jiralhanae formed a semi-circle behind their Chieftain, though they were unarmed. Jarul slouched against the wall directly behind the mass of Jiralhanae; Unone could see a small splatter of purple blood painted the blue wall. _So the bastard used his gravity hammer. Another example of a Jiralhanae's restraint. _The silver-haired monstrosity that was the Chieftain pulled the hammer from the small crater and turn it's head at the Shipmaster. "Ah, I didn't see you there sangheili. My sincere apologies."

The pack chuckled in a disturbing chorus as Unone got to his feet, still dazed from the anti-gravity effect of the brute's hammer. The Shipmaster growled to them as he strode towards his brother, "maybe you fools should learn restraint before attacking a target. I hope you slew the Demon after intruding."

All five of the Jiralhanae wheeled around in defensive postures, giving Unone death stares. The Chieftain watched as Unone arrived at his brother's side and spoke. "Sangheili aren't capable it seems to defeat a mere hu-"

Unone was about to respond angrily to the Chieftain words when he was cut off mid sentence by an unnatural gurgling, coming from the _Chieftain._ Unone spun on his heels to see the two-pronged energy sword lodged through the beast's throat from behind, the Jiralhanae's blood became superheated and bubbled as it sprayed from the wound. The brute clawed instinctively at the sword that pierced his throat and made horrible sounding gurgle howls and yells as his hammer dropped into the dirt. "... the Demon... beh-"

Just as his stunned pack members roared in surprise and anger, the sword sliced horizontally in a wide swath and the Chieftain's head was decapitated from his body in a fountain of gory chunks and spurts of blood. As the massive headless creature collapsed upon it's hammer and revealed the assailant : a blood-splattered human, tall and imposing clutching onto a energy sword. The superheated blade sizzled as remnants of the Jiralhanae's blood evaporated off it's surface. Unone could see the human had probably narrowly evaded the Chieftain's hammer attack as it breathed heavily and a new bloody gash had appeared along it's forehead. The Demon's curious green-olive armor had new dents in the chest-plate and thigh areas, and even at a distance Unone could see the human was shaken up. The Shipmaster examined Jarul's wound; the Demon had penetrated near his collarbone-shoulder area. Jarul heaved a mouthful of blood upon the dirt, "Brother... why, why did you," Jarul coughed again and stained Unone's arm with his blood, "why did you interfere?"

The Shipmaster, as if prompted by the rest of the Jiralhanae's roars, scanned left. The four beasts charged the Demon on all fours, their faces intent on shredding the human to pieces. They bore their fangs and spittle was ejected from their mouths baying for the Demon's blood. They didn't receive it. The human moved with startling agility, dodging the first three Jiralhanae as if she was a matador goading multiple bulls at once. The last sandy tinted behemoth lunged at the human, it's massive outstretched arm capable of tearing apart anything in it's path. The white-haired Demon purposely fell to both armored knees, the alien's bulk soared over her head. The human's energy blade then launched skywards to the heavens, impaling the beast on a melting dual-pronged sword of pure energy. The Jiralhanae was almost sheared in two and showered her in it's innards as what remained of the alien tumbled into the dirt, splattering the ground in it's maroon gore. The human, covered in the blood of the Jiralhanae, didn't give any respite to the remaining trio of the aliens. Unone watched, stunned in amazement as the Demon engaged the Jiralhanae with the energy sword, slicing off limbs and decapitating heads in sprays of carbonized bone matter and gore. _This Demon, this human is more than a match for blood-crazed, berserking Jiralhanae. Why didn't... _Jarul staggered to his own feet, one four-digit hand clutching onto his wound, blood seeping down his cobalt armor. "The Demon, I will," Jarul limped away from Unone, "slay the fiend."

The Shipmaster snatched the sword hilt from Jarul's limp hand, catching the injured sangheili off guard. "No! You wouldn't be a match for the Demon. I did not instruct you to blindly attack an enemy, especially if that enemy has a much greater advantage."

Off in the distance, dozens of Jiralhanae jumped from the lower spectator tiers, eager for the chance to taste the human's blood. Jarul glared at Unone, his eye contact unwavering. "How could you even say such a blasphemous thing! True sangheili warriors never cower away letting others face their threats. My honor demands that I slay the Demon!"

The not to distant howls and yells from slain Jiralhanae sounded in the arena. Unone without hesitation reached out, got a good grip on Jarul's shoulder and swung a powerful punch into his brother's bloodied face. Jarul let out a disturbed whiff of breath and the young sangheili crumpled to the ground. "You are still a whelp, inexperienced and foolish! Can you not see you will be slain? That is what the Demon wants, for you to attack without judgment or tactics! Look at what happened to those Jiralhanae! They are guided only by instinct and emotion and they were massacred! Are you truly no better than those brutes?"

"My glory as a warrior of the Covenant, my faith in the Great Journey is clear and simple. My blood demands the Demon's death, by my hands! You are a coward Unone, not worthy of command or respect! A disgrace! You shame the Hierarchs and all sangheili! I will not back down and retreat!"

The growing uproar that was thousands of displeased Covenant spectators almost drowned out anything else that tried to make it's presence known. Jarul rose and snarled at Unone, a mix of blood and saliva foamed from his mouth. "Brother, if will not let me slay the Demon," his arm-mounted energy dagger activated, "then you must die."


	9. First Conversations

Chapter Eight- First Conversations

February 1, 2553

0440 Hours

UNSC Corvette _Valley of Shadows_

In slipspace transit...

First Lieutenant Julia Vavilov had, under usual circumstances, tried to avoid interaction with others as best she could. Six years of watching innumerable amounts of friends and comrades slain by the Covenant on myriad worlds, all of which were glassed regardless of her efforts had closed her off to making new friends or permanently knowing other names. But now, on a ship as cramped as the _Valley of Shadows, _learning new names and remembering them came as part of her situation. _Old habits die hard though. _Julia scoffed at the notion of making friends among the crowd aboard this particular corvette as she brushed past stacks of munition boxes, filled to the brim with reserve ammunition and firearms. _And who would I make nice with on this tub? An AI who thinks he's literally William Wallace of the 13__th__ century? Or maybe our new wet-behind the ears, newly promoted Lieutenant Commander? And I know damn well that split-jaw alien bastard on board probably won't even whisper around my general direction. _Julia walked at a brisk pace as the cramped interior of the corvette drew in on her; she had always hated long term deployments on Navy ships. _Only part of being an ODST that royally sucks; you gotta spend way too much time on ships. I prefer boots on the ground, even if I don't have layers of Titanium-A between me and the baddies. Besides, didn't do the Navy any good; most of those ships are halfway to oblivion now. _The Helljumper nearly collided head-first into the massive bulk of the Spartan, she herself seemingly having problems navigating the maze-like interior of _Valley of Shadows. _Julia was reasonably tall for a woman, but she had look up to gaze into the Spartan's incorruptible expression. The ODST smirked seeing the Spartan try to negotiate the narrow ceiling of the vessel, her snow-white hair nearly scraped the gray metal plates above. _Damn if she's having problems, can't imagine how our hinge-head friend is faring. _Julia's grin must have confused the Spartan because she cocked her head, her arms cradling a large olive drab box. "Is something amusing?"

The ODST stared into the Spartan's face and could see multiple scars crisscrossing her pale face. "Nah, not really it's just that it looks like your having trouble walking around this tin can."

The Spartan's amber eyes blinked erratically and met Julia's gaze. "I see, is it that noticeable I'm having a hard time? Luckily my quarters aren't so tight."

The woman shifted the large container in her arms and proceeded past Julia; the ODST followed in close pursuit, suddenly curious of the massive bulk of a person. The Spartan only acknowledged Julia's proximity with a slight twitch of her head as the two continued through a even narrower passage. Julia ran her fingers through her ruby hair and said, "I'm sorry I forgot your name back at the briefing, it's-"

"Rene, more specifically its Rene-081."

Rene's expression turned to dread as the passage clearance became even smaller and she was forced to duck, side-by-side a thoroughly amused Julia. "Yeah that's it, sorry about that I'm not too good with names, even when there's only a few of us to remember."

Rene's forehead clanged against a low-lying bar of metal; the Spartan shrugged it off with a noticeable wince. Followed by a grinning Julia, the two entered Rene's much more spacious quarters. The room itself was small area wise, but the ceiling had twice the headroom of other areas of the ship. As Rene set down the box and began tinkering with the contents, the ODST approached what appeared to be a gigantic metal hanger, and attached to it in visible section cutoffs was a suit of MJOLNIR armor. The iridescent green coating reflected the room's ceiling lights as it stood motionless upon the metallic holder, as if a Spartan occupied it, standing vigilant. Julia astonishingly ran a hand over the chest-plate; the armor was smooth to the touch, yet she could feel the durability and strength behind it. Her amazed reflection stared back at her in the visor's golden sheen and she could make out Rene standing impressively behind her. "So this is the MJOLNIR armor suit, man if the ODST's had something like this back in the war we would've kicked some serious ass."

Rene stood vigilant, flanking the ODST, her voice had a strange calm and relaxation one wouldn't expect of a Spartan. "Unfortunately the power of the MJOLNIR can only be utilized by an augmented human, otherwise without a strengthened skeletal system your bones would be pulverized by the sheer reactions of the suit."

Julia laughed, "well sign me up next augmentation procedure, cause' I want _this._"

Rene gave the ignorant ODST a sad parent look and sighed, her bed creaked with stress as she sat on it. "As I understand it, ONI is implementing a SPARTAN-IV program that accepts qualified volunteers."

Julia stepped away from the monolithic armor and reclined next to Rene, much to the Spartan's surprise. "Although as much as it would be bad ass to wear something like that," she gestured to the MJOLNIR, "I belong in the ODSTs, the Corps' second place alien-killing tools of war."

Rene's vague expression puzzled Julia before the now-perky Marine's eyes altered in a look of shock as she stared at the Spartan's body. "Holy crap! Look at the size of your arms Rene! How did you do _that!_"

Rene watched in horror as the overtly excited ODST grabbed and examined her muscular arm in absolute bliss. "In all my years in the Corps, I can say without a doubt that's the biggest freakin' bicep I've ever seen! You make me look like a civie Rene!"

With her left arm being tugged by Julia, Rene reached over into the box and retrieved a curious possession, it's small frame dominated by the Spartan's hand. Even Julia ceased inspecting Rene's arm to get a glimpse of the tiny picture held in her hands. Rene spoke as if she was in the process of turning back time, her voice grim and detached. "This is probably the only picture I have of John and the others. They all probably believe I'm dead now, well the few who are alive that is."

"Why would they think you're dead?"

Rene's grip suddenly tightened around the picture and noticeable cracks began to appear across the glass. "The majority of the Spartans were wiped out from the augmentation process or were so disfigured that they couldn't continue active duty, and were instead reassigned within ONI. I was one of the casualties from the procedures, me and about twelve others. The rest... weren't so lucky."

Julia eyes looked inquisitively at Rene, "So you were rehabilitated later on? Why didn't the the other Spartans know you were back into service?"

Rene clenched her jaw into a tight, motionless expression, "because ONI never allowed me to transfer back into front-line duty with the rest of the Spartans. They had... other plans."

_That explains how the spooks got their hands so quickly on a Spartan. _"So," Julia sprang from the bed, "what _did _they do with you?"

Rene stared into her MJOLNIR armor as if deep in thought, "Section Three reevaluated me and Kirk's, another rehabilitated Spartan, usefulness to the war effort. This all occurred just after 2535, and since me and Kirk had been in a coma for the better part of a decade, NavSpecWep briefed us on the Covenant threat, and how they had pretty much destroyed nearly every Outer Colony, despite Admiral Cole's best efforts to repel them."

Julia leaned against the statuesque MJOLNIR suit, listening intently to the Spartan. "We were placed under the direct command of ONI Section Three, and for almost an entire year we were retrained and refreshed on not only our weapons and tactics, but on how to successfully engage Covenant forces. We were even equipped with the latest variant of MJOLNIR, a skunkworks privatized version of the Mark IV, which was a predecessor that directly led to the development of shield outfitted suits and AI-capable housing suites. The one you see there is the MJOLNIR Mark VII system, the most cutting-edge piece of hardware the UNSC currently possesses."

The ODST once again marveled at the MJOLNIR suit, _this makes ODST suits look like toys. _Rene quietly sat cross-legged, her large hands cupped between her lap. "From 2536 to 2545, myself and Kirk were dispatched behind enemy controlled sectors of space to eliminate key targets of interest to the war effort, and to perform more discreet tasks for ONI's _other _divisions."

Julia picked up Rene's emphasis on _other. Hmm, spooks at their finest it seems. _"However, in 2545 we were ordered for a major defensive deployment on the colony Dawn, long since glassed now but back in 2545 it was the last major Inner Colony before Reach. It didn't go well."

The ODST cocked her head to one side and continued listening. "After about a week of repelling the Covenant fleet bearing down on Dawn, the Navy lost it's last few ships still defending the colony from orbit, but there were still numerous ground-based forces left stranded on Dawn."

Helljumpers had the unpleasant experience of being ground-side as Covenant ships in low orbit penetrated the atmosphere. As much as Julia liked boots on the ground, she wasn't that attached when beams of plasma devastated the surface kilometers from the impact area . "We were extracted via Calypso exfiltration craft, thinking we just escaped the fate that befell Dawn. We were wrong..."

An abrupt voice blasted over the _Valley's _intercom, none other than Wallace's sing-song accent. "Transition to normal space in approximately fifteen minutes boys and girls... and um... alien."

Julia thought she could make out a distant nonhuman roar off in the distance. "The Lieutenant Commander wants everyone on the bridge ASAP, we're going to refresh our mission objectives and parameters."

The Spartan bounced off the bed to her feet then swiveled her head to meet Julia, "C'mon, let's get to the bridge."

Rene watched as the ODST strode out of the room, took one last quick glance at her picture, then she hastily left.

"This my friends is Tundra, an Inner Colony world that was never invaded by the Covenant, and as such it was never glassed."

Wallace's avatar walked along the sides of the holographic projection of Tundra, his sword shifted in his hands with each step. The four organic members of _Valley of Shadows _each stood near the projection, their varying faces illuminated with shades of light blue. Wallace stopped his patrol in front of the Field Major; the sangheili clicked his mandibles as if to produce some kind of musical harmony. The AI's expression soured at the look of the alien as he continued, "Tundra was one of the last Inner Colonies established by humanity before colonization began to expand into what we now call the Outer Colonies. As such, Tundra had close proximity to it's farther flung cousins and the relations between the two became much more crucial when the Insurrection began."

Wallace stared imposingly into the sangheili's eyes before continuing, "Tundra had succumbed to Insurrectionist governance during the bloody civil war without much resistance; in fact the populace supported the rebel takeover. It has stayed this way all throughout the Covenant War and survived being glassed, our good friends at Naval Intelligence believe this was the case because the colony was so remote. However, little Tundra has come under scrutiny once again by Section Zero."

The Field Major steadily observed as Wallace approached Fields, his face beaded with perspiration. "Lieutenant Commander, I believe you can take over from here."

Fields quickly shot glances at Rene and Julia before clearing his throat and starting. "Like Wallace said this place is pretty remote and has stayed off the UNSC's radar up until now. Castle was right, an unknown number in ONI have been naughty and we're here to find out what they're up to."

"Section Zero has been compiling for the last month nearly _billion _credit transactions based in Section One's higher echelons, and thanks to Wallace here we've found out where they've been investing the UNSC's resources: here at Tundra. Considering that the UNSC has officially labeled Tundra as being independent of Earth-based control, Zero has found it strange Section One would not only hide credit withdraws and deposits, but _where _thatfunding was headed. Now that the war's over and Zero has an SDG unit again, us, it's time to see what they're up to exactly. Wallace has traced unauthorized taps into ONI's secure data database to a location near the outskirts of Tundra's capital city, Lincoln. That said, we will deploy via Pelican to this location, investigate and see what we turn up. Any questions?"

Rene almost immediately descended on the question as if waiting for years for the chance. "Wallace what exactly were these database taps trying to extract?"

The AI waited an unusually long period of time before finally, in a grim tone he whispered, "Xenoarchaeology."


	10. Agony

Chapter Nine- Agony

[UNKNOWN DATE ]

LOCATION UNKNOWN

Agony. Pain at its most primal level, its most refined form. Living beings have relied upon this most basic instinct for uncountable eras, innumerable expanses of time. Simply a warning, an internal alarm. A beacon for hope, or the indicator of destined demise. Its sensation cannot be completely ignored nor completely rendered useless. Eventually, the agony will remind one of its inextinguishable presence, like the morning sunrise. It is delayed, but never forgotten, and never disappears indefinitely. And now, Kai felt more pure agony than even he, a Spartan believed possible. His screams went unanswered, his pleas ignored. "What... where... Cay-"

Kai felt as if broken glass had been crammed into his veins and he screamed once more into the endless black void that surrounded the lone Spartan. It was relentless, whatever the force that did this to him, and more pinpricks of unleashed pain spread like a locust through his body and Kai cried to the heavens. _Why haven't I gone into shock? This torment is unlike anything I've experienced. What happened? _The Spartan's suffering continued as what seemed like waves of increasing magnitude washed over his body, each more excruciating than the last. Kai chewed into his lip and cried, "What the hell is going on!"

An unbearable pulse of pain seemed to scorch his very mind and the Spartan's eyes welled as his teeth exposed drips of crimson blood that ran harmlessly down his chin. Kai just came to the realization that he was completely naked as another more unbearable impulseof unknown energy shot to his brain then spread throughout his body; Kai's suspended body shook violently as he clenched his teeth. The first droplet of blood dripped down to the blackened floor just as a strange and eccentric voice sounded in the void around Kai, his words seemed to loft in the very air around him. "Yes it appears you have a taste of its peculiar... traits."

The Spartan screamed out into the darkness, "LET ME THE FUCK OUT OF HERE!"

Another jolt of pain paralyzed Kai speechless as the mysterious voice drifted again, "You have quite a temper. I believe your current temperament will simply be fuel for the fire, it _feeds off it. _You current generation Spartans have a rather, odd mutation to say the least. It is fascinating to see it react so differently with your anatomy than the other complete failures."

What felt like a lightning bolt smacked square in Kai's brain and he once more shrieked into the black to no avail. The beaten Spartan tried to speak, but the words never came out. Instead the devious voice spoke in his stead. "Frontal lobe has been mutated to allow the Gamma Company Spartan-III's access to animal-like reserves of adrenaline and strength. However without proper treatment, it will cause your mind to literally revert to bestial instincts. It truly is quite something to see this firsthand, it's exhilarating response and adaptation to a foreign presence."

His body quaked as more intense pain overtook Kai and once more he yelled into the blackened void. "Why... wh... am I... here?"

The man's voice sounded as close to Kai as the distance from shoulder to shoulder, "Why? Isn't that just ridiculously stupid to say? You know they call me "crazy". Crazy? No I simply enjoy more primal desires and seeing your continued suffering is truly a sight to behold. You must have thought you escaped that world, but alas you are in another hell far worse than you could imagine. If its any consolation know the female Spartan is experiencing the same sheer agony as yourself."

Kai nearly lost his mind just at the thought of Cay feeling this level of pure torture. _Is this torture? No this is far worse, not even the Covenant could bring this level of pain. Are my previous injuries healed?_ As if reading his mind, the now-sadistic voice responded, "It is kind of ironic. Your wounds you sustained while on that _dreadful_ world were completely mended and healed. It is quite hilarious actually but maybe that's my sense of humor! Isn't it funny little Spartan? Isn't it?"

Kai was embraced by the agony once more and his teeth dug into his lip once more. "You didn't laugh? Why not? WHY NOT? Oh well it could have to do with it trying to replace and override your conscience with it's own. Maybe your primal side-effects from that little mutation of yours keeps the cells from dividing completely... yes this is something. It is astonishing how powerful, even when simply cell based, it truly is."

_What the hell is this guy talking about? How did I end up here? _His head felt like the inside chaos of a Shaw-Fujikawa translight engine and his eyes became glassy. "I'm sorry I forgot you can't see anything in there. Here we go, and they should turn on now."

The immediate flash of powerful lights blinded Kai momentarily into a half dazed stare. He couldn't keep count of how many times he blinked but finally the area around him came in a foggy-like focus. The "room" was small and contained, and if it weren't for the massive overhung light fixtures above the place would have stayed pitch-black. Almost everything was black except the harness Kai himself was strapped to, and he was fastened in in place by thick cuffs of titanium-A. The gray colored harness itself sat next to an autosurgeon machine, and Kai gazed in horror as thick rivulets of relatively fresh blood dripped of the sides. The floor was nothing more than black dirt; Kai's suspended feet nearly touched it. It was then he realized that his musculature and physique had drastically changed, and the swift bursts of pain had almost dissipated. The Spartan attempted to move his head as best he could to see the changes his body had undergone and was stunned. Every visible muscle had increased in size two-fold; Kai flexed his massive arms and ripples of muscle tightened and expanded. He made the rough calculations in his head and found he had actually grown a few inches taller as well as he flexed his substantial quadriceps and calf muscles. He cringed in pain as every inch of his body was racked with a lasting soreness, but it was nothing compared to the earlier agony he endured. "As you can see Spartan you have received a pretty significant physical alteration especially compared to the last time I laid eyes on you."

Kai pivoted his head trying to pinpoint where the voice came from; this "room" was part of a cavern. He made out an observation post but it was shielded by thick shatterproof glass and layers of concrete. He had seen that same fortified set-up on Onyx and usually these watching stations had multiple sheets of Titanium-A built into them. The cryptic voice continued to speak, "Now your body has an impressive muscular and cardiovascular system. And your body regenerates wounds at an staggering pace; those broken bones and torn ligaments were healed within minutes of application of the Super Cells."

_Super Cells? What exactly happened to me? _"Disappointingly however, it seems only to work within acceptable parameters when applied to the Gamma Spartan-III's. All other subjects have failed miserably, though it will be quite interesting to see the long-term effects. Your mutation is the only thing standing in it's path it would appear."

_Need to get out of here now. _Kai harnessed all of his new-found strength endowed to him and attempted to break free of the titanium shackles that bound him to the harness. He could feel the alloy groan with stress, but it did not break. But he didn't stop. Kai continued his battle with the shackles, his veins were now clearly visible and crisscrossed his struggling muscles until finally, at last the alloy gave under the pressure and snapped; and sent the Spartan unceremoniously tumbling into the dirt. The voice became noticeably annoyed and said, "now I _didn't _say you could do that you know, right? Didn't I? Right!"

_Clearly whoever this guy is, he's got problems. _"Well then... I'll just have to put you back on those restraints won't I?"

A previously hidden passage into the cavernous room parted and revealed a dozen Kig-Yar, Jackals, that fanned out into the room. Kai's adrenaline pumped through his veins at the sight of an enemy and he searched for a weapon. Their bird-like faces snapped unintelligible orders at each other and each possessed a bulky stun rod in their hands that popped with electric energy. Kai turned to the autosurgeon and found a suitable weapon; a cruel-looking surgical blade caked with dried blood. The Spartan snatched the blade off the autosurgeon table just as a Kig-Yar thrust a stun rod aimed for his face. The man-sized alien screeched as Kai easily side-stepped it and used the blade in an uppercut motion aimed underneath the Jackal's jaw. In one motion Kai policed the stun rod in his other hand and violently ripped out the surgical tool with the other sending spurts of purple blood onto his chest and face. Three more Kig-Yar lunged at him, their oversized maroon eyes reflected the gore-covered human. _Too slow guys, _Kai amusingly thought as each attack missed the Spartan. The human, in a whirlwind maneuver decapitated one Jackal and lodged the stun rod deep into another's throat, sending the alien to the ground shaking in spasms. The Spartan used his superior agility to move through the mass of screeching aliens, slicing through throats and crushing heads in showers of purple blood. Before long, only a single Kig-Yar remained and it nervously shook the rod at the blood-splattered human. Unnaturally nimble, Kai reappeared behind the Jackal and smashed the back of it's skull in with a single fist. His balled hand emerged from the alien's forehead with chunks of brain matter and bone stuck on it.

Kai didn't know what changed with him or how, but for better or worse, he liked it. Gone was the frightened confusion and incapacitating agony that gripped him earlier. Now he had a target and an objective and with a lightning fast motion the Spartan was gone, carrying nothing but a bloody blade and a smile on his focused visage.


	11. The First Trial

Chapter Ten- The First Trial

February 1, 2553

0645 Hours

UNSC _Valley of Shadows_

In orbit above independent colony Tundra

"Wallace get this damn corvette moving!"

The resonant explosion of _Valley of Shadow's _emergency thrusters being activated reverberated all the way into the cramped bridge as Fields held onto the railing around his commander's chair for dear life. The volatile compounds, when mixed, literally blasted a UNSC ship off into an unpredictable course, useful for evading potentially deadly enemy attacks. But it also turned the inside of said vessel into a snow globe. The celestial appearance of Tundra righted itself once more as the _Valley _attempted to regain a stable orbit above the planet. Wallace's Scottish drawl sounded through the bridge's speakers, "Innie triple-A avoided Lieutenant Commander, though I suggest we move on an out-system vector as quickly as possible."

Fields tried to regain his composure, wiping a sweaty forehead with the back of his shaking hand. "Wallace, was that _plasma _fire?"

The AI's holographic projection flickered to life next to the pedestal adjacent to Fields. "Yes based external sensors the attack originated from emplacements within close proximity to the planet capitol Lincoln."

"Wallace bring us on a vector in the dark side of Tundra's moon Dorum, get us out of range of those plasma batteries."

Without speaking a word, Wallace oriented the corvette towards Dorum, a natural satellite twice the size of Luna and half the distance away from the parent world. Dorum, unlike Luna, was covered by lush tropical rainforests and massive oceans and had a noticeable tilt to it, as if spinning like a top. The dark gray-black frame that was _Valley of Shadows _propelled its way towards the moon, tiny in comparison to the giant terrestrial planets. "Wallace can you confirm if the Pelican made it safely to the surface?"

Fields hoped the _Valley _drew the AA batteries attention rather than a small dropship. Wallace cleared his throat with an overly obnoxious noise and said, "Yes Lieutenant Commander, Pelican 11908-VS touched down near target LZ nearly ten minutes ago, almost right on schedule."

Fields exhaled a sigh of relief, "Patch me through to Rene on a secure link."

A long hiss of static erupted through the comm system before an almost monotone and cold female voice spoke. "This is Zeta-One, we've made landfall and have reached suspected target area."

Fields responded, "This is _Valley of Shadows _Spartan, give me a sit-rep, over"

Rene paused a full minute before answered, "Coordinates confirm target area. Uploading visual to the _Valley of Shadows_ now sir."

The bridge's main viewscreen came to life as Fields whispered to Wallace, "ETA for planned trajectory?"

"Nine minutes sir."

Fields redirected his focus to the real-time images dominating the viewscreen. The feed came directly from Rene's HUD as Fields could make out **S-081 **in luminous blue characters in the bottom left corner of the HUD. The silhouettes of the Field Major in his bulky crimson armor and First Lieutenant Vavilov's ONI-issued Reconnaissance armor brought up the left and right sides of Rene respectively. The trio had taken up surveillance positions atop a crest of a large incline which overlooked a colossal opening into what appeared to be a group of grassy foothills. The "opening" drew a comparison to the mouth of some legendary beast, the maw prepared to engorge on anything in it's path. Far out in the distance, past vast expanses of forest and mountains, Fields could make out the glittering skyline of Lincoln underneath a light blue sky and warm sun. What disturbed him the most about the picturesque image were the undeniably alien bird-like reptilian bipedals that guarded the entrance. "Zeta-One can you confirm enemy presence?"

"Sir I count fifteen Jackals armed with carbines and needle rifles. Appears they are guarding the opening into what appears to be caverns. Enemy seems to be stationary and unaware of our presence."

Fields reclined into his chair, _Jackals? What the hell are aliens doing here? _"Wallace any insight into this situation?"

The AI remained silent for a full half-second before responding, "detailed intelligence forays into independent worlds suggest many members of the Covenant remained within human space after their defeat. Section One believes these former Covenant have settled on human worlds outside UNSC influence and in exchange the Insurrectionists have confiscated most of their weaponry. Perhaps these Kig-Yar have been hired as mercenaries."

Almost immediately Rene said, "that would make sense. Permission to engage threat Lieutenant Commander?"

Wallace whispered into Fields ear, "Sir ETA to Dorum in five minutes."

The young commander of _Valley of Shadows _peered around the live feed from Rene to see Dorum; the green-tinted moon appeared closer with every passing second. Fields settled back into his seat and sighed, "You have authority on this matter Zeta-One and you do have authorization to engage any potential enemies. I'll try to reestablish contact soon," Wallace's avatar motioned with great effort towards the ship's primary sensor readings, "good luck Zeta Team."

"Likewise sir."

The live feed abruptly snapped off and just as quickly displayed the worrisome AI's concerns on-screen. "Lieutenant Commander long range sensors picked up contacts originating from Tundra; sir they're only hundred thousand kilometers from the _Valley._"

"Bring up starboard cameras, get me an idea of what we're dealing with here."

Almost instantaneously the main viewscreen came to life with the feed of the corvette's starboard long range imaging equipment. Fields stood and squinted at the image of Tundra's dominating presence, "Wallace enhance what I'm supposed to see here."

After zooming in many times over, Wallace stated, "sir that's the best I can do. But I think you get the picture now; we're being followed."

The Lieutenant Commander's eyes' widened at the sight of a dozen Seraph interceptors racing towards the lone corvette at exceptionally increasing speeds. "Wallace get our point-defense turrets hot and operational; push main reactor output to hundred and ten percent on the double! Let's see how ONI's new prototype handles herself."

When Amos Castle, now CO of ONI Section Zero told the then Lieutenant Fields that not only was he to receive a promotion, but a new prototype corvette to command he could hardly believe him. In fact, he didn't believe him until he saw the _Valley of Shadows _itself, undergoing last-minute calibrations and maintenance at Earth's top-secret Naval Intelligence dry-dock in the frigid north of Alaska. Fields had been to the Alaskan dry-dock before, after graduating from Luna OCS and receiving deployment orders from ONI Section One. Usually the place was used for storage of the UNSC's Prowler fleet, as was the case when Fields first arrived, bound for the UNSC _Trojan Horse. _The _Valley of Shadows _however_, _was no Prowler. When he and Castle had entered the holding bay for the _Valley, _he knew she was something special. The ONI head technician explained the ship's schematics and specifications right down to the letter, but the man's monotone wore on him and the three most important specifics stood out.

One: the _Valley of Shadows _was outfitted with the latest in Prowler stealth technology; mainly the stealth ablative coating and texture buffers but without the bulkiness of a normal Prowler. The ship possessed a streamlined frame and was considerably more compact than a Prowler. Two: the _Valley _had been upgraded with the most cutting-edge reverse-engineered Covenant _and _Forerunner propulsion systems and advancements in Slipspace drive technology. Simply put, the tiny corvette was incredibly fast in normal space and Slipspace. And third (secretly Fields' most favorite addition), the _Valley _was equipped with a ship-based, self recharging energy shield system, _and _a new, more advanced alloy battle-plate. Castle had explained to him that the _Valley _was to be a test-bed for incorporating these new advancements into the UNSC fleet at large that wouldn't be so terribly expensive. When Fields had asked, his CO refused to say how much the _Valley _had cost ONI to build.

The Lieutenant Commander gripped the railing along the bridge and said, "Wallace how the hell did the Innies pinpoint our location, first with the AA attack and now," he gestured at the viewscreen, "with the Seraph welcoming committee? Especially with our stealth capabilities activated?"

The teardrop-shaped single seat fighters zoomed towards the sleek corvette, repulsion engines flaring bright blue. "Because sir when the Pelican launched from the _Valley's _hold it gave away our position. That said, it would still require powerful atmospheric scanners to detect our current vector."

_Great, the UNSC hating Insurrectionists are now not only armed with Covenant weapons and vehicles, but now have advanced planetary radar._ _Exactly the kind of high-risk op Castle said this would be. _Wallace's avatar materialized directly in front of the brooding Lieutenant Commander, his posture heroic with his sword poised at the oncoming enemy. "Wallace once those Seraphs are in range, light em' up with the pulse laser turrets."

_Damn I almost forgot about the lasers. _The first squadron of Seraphs, six in total rocketed toward the corvette, plasma cannon weapon ports blazing with superheated energy. The first plasma salvo splashed against the _Valley's _shields that flared luminous gold in response to the attack. The corvette's hardened point-defense ports along the ship's sides radiated bright red, as if a momentary sun enveloped the vessel. In a single millisecond the blinding light released, and in it's wake left six shattered Seraphs tumbling in the zero-gee of space destined to burn in Dorum's atmosphere. The remaining half-dozen interceptors scattered in an attempt to minimize the overwhelming power of the _Valley's _pulse lasers. It didn't help. The eight gun ports of the _Valley _once again shined a brilliant red and unleashed it's destructive power. Six more Seraphs became gutted with unrelenting energy and exploded in a shower of electric blue flame and hundreds of tiny pieces of fiery metal that quickly died in the absolute zero of space. Fields ran a hand through his now sweaty black hair, a nervous habit that he had on numerous occasions tried to lose. "Wallace, bring our texture buffers to full power once more. Let's lay low in the moon's shadow for a bit."

The bridge reverberated with the momentum of the corvette's engines, and as they approached the satellite Wallace snickered, "a small victory Lieutenant Commander?"

Fields glared thoughtfully at the AI, "a victory nonetheless Wallace. Lets hope we can have more like that."

The corvette soon became engulfed by the dark side of the moon, and then it too became as black as night.


	12. Trust

Chapter Eleven- Trust

February 1, 2553

0630 Hours

Deployment to surface of independent colony Tundra

"Come on hinge-head get in the damn Pelican!"

A thoroughly pissed off Field Major grabbed his helmet from atop an olive drab munitions crate, slid the helmet upon his elongated head and stepped aboard the what the human in the black armor called the "blood tray." The AI construct's curious voice blasted through the dropship's COM channel as the craft's atmospheric seal shut with a _hiss _behind the sangheili and the Pelican exited the _Valley of Shadows _compact bay. "I've uploaded the coordinates to the Pelican's NAV computer so it should be smooth sailing from here on."

The sangheili wearily took a look around the cramped interior of the dropship; the small human in black armor called Julia sat with her arms crossed and a battle rifle to her side. Even though her helmet sat on her head, he knew she seethed with hatred just at the sight of him. Julia made a point to sit as far away from the sangheili as possible near the vessel's cockpit where the larger human female operated the controls. Even though he had been stationed on Sanghelios for the entirety of the war with the humans, the Field Major had heard the tales of the "Demons", near impossible to kill humans who wore strange armor and possessed tactical skill that outmatched even the most skilled of warriors. Being so close to one of these fabled Demons made him on edge, but he secretly anticipated seeing the human in combat. If there was to be any combat, that is. Being that these seats were designed for _human _passengers, the crimson armored sangheili nearly took up the space of three seats with his massive body, and just as he set his carbine on the seat adjacent to him the unfamiliar sound of a rifle bolt being charged resounded next to his head. "Now bud your gonna tell what exactly are you doing with us, or I will blow your ugly ass head into two even more ugly pieces."

The Field Major's head creaked to his left to see the barrel of a sniper rifle mere inches from his eye, and Julia holding it. He knew the power of these rifles firsthand; he had witnessed one almost decapitate a Jiralhanae during the Great Schism. He was in no hurry to anger the human. "What do you desire to know?"

The now helmeted head of the one called Rene spun back from the pilot seat momentarily, assessed the situation, and continued focusing on controlling the dropship. Julia's head cocked to one side and said, "how bout' you tell me your actual name instead of "Field Major". That might go a little ways for you to not have your brains splattered against this fine vessel."

The sangheili's yellow shark-like eyes peered into the human's crescent-shaped visor and stated deeply, "Kiel 'Antan."

"So whatcha doin' with us humans all the sudden? Did have a sudden change of heart after murdering innocent colonists?"

Kiel grumbled sarcastically, "Didn't I already tell you I never killed any of your kind? I was on my homeworld Sanghelios for the duration of the conflict with your people. I am assisting your Office of Naval Intelligence on behalf of the Arbiter, and my brother who is a Fleet Master within the Sanghelios Navy."

Julia must have not liked the way Kiel attempted to speak English and raised her voice, "you don't get it do you?. Just because your "Arbiter" and Hood got all cozy with each other doesn't mean I have to like it. They don't speak for the entirety of both sides, and I know damn well your "people" don't like it either. I could give a crap less about what you're supposed to do because I'm seriously considering blasting you to kingdom come right now simply cause' I want to."

The Pelican shuddered from entering the planet's atmosphere and knocked Julia off balance. Kiel saw the opportunity and took it, lunging from his seat and barreling into the threatening human. Julia swung the butt of the rifle but it harmlessly pinged off the sangheili's armor as he smashed her into the dropship's bulkhead, both of his massive hands engulfed the humans wrists against the wall as the rifle clattered to the shaking floor. He had it with this particular human's threats and accusations and his mandibles spread open in response to the roar in front of Julia's visor. "YOU KNOW NOTHING!"

The woman's armored legs kicked into the imposing sangheili to no avail and soon she stopped trying, her head tilted to one side. "I have to admit, I like a guy that plays rough."

The sangheili growled a deep guttural response and he relaxed his grip,"you humans are frustrating to deal with. Abrasive and arrogant. However, I still wouldn't have fought against your kin, not even you."

Kiel took a deep breath and released his grip on Julia's wrists; he hadn't realized he had her suspended off the floor of the vessel as her boots clanged against the metal surface. Kiel was surprised when the human smacked his large shoulder playfully with her fist , "C'mon big guy I may not like you, but I got I feelin' your a tough SOB. Or wherever it is you split-jaws come from."

The sangheili towered over Julia which meant if he had wanted to he could have killed her with his bare hands. He relaxed and then nodded at the curious woman and went back to his seat, puzzled. _Humans, it seems are easily angered. However, _he half-stared at Julia as she scooped up the fallen sniper rifle and placed it next to her battle rifle, _maybe these strange humans can become comrades? Fellow warriors? _He dared not to think of "friends". Sangheili rarely created lasting friendships amongst their _own _kind, let alone members of a different species. The one thing that hadn't altered when the proud saurian people rebelled against the Prophets: what drove them as a species. Even before the time of the Covenant, the sangheili had erected massive states, each similar but distinctively different, on Sanghelios. The vast reaches of their homeworld had been divided before time itself in the minds of the Kaidons who ruled these states. It has always been imprinted within the sangheili spirit to be as noble and strong as possible, to forge ahead and create something with the blood of your ancestors and the sweat of your brow. But now, as Kiel had watched and observed the humans in front of him, he wondered if they were any different than his kind. _Only in the heat of battle, it appears, will I be able to judge these aliens more accurately. The Arbiter had told me it is something that can only be witnessed with one's own eyes. The "human spirit." _The larger female human, the one called Rene stepped out into the troop bay, her green armor illuminated Tundra's sun with considerable brightness. The Spartan's helmet briefly turned towards both of their general areas and said, "the Pelican's on autopilot, NAV computer is set to touchdown at an LZ a couple klicks from target area. Heard some commotion in here-"

Julia sprang up, Recon visor reflecting light, "no everything's cool. Me and Kiel here just had a _polite _conversation. Nothin' to concern yourself with."

Rene nonchalantly shrugged and took a seat next to Julia. The Spartan retrieved a modest duffel bag from underneath the seat, unzipped it, and began checking and rechecking the weapons and equipment stored within. A battle rifle in one hand, Julia called out to the pondering sangheili, "you all squared away over there Big Guy?"

_Why must humans use such strange names? _Kiel snatched the carbine laying next to him and checked the firearm's digital ammunition counter, displayed by a simple bar. Satisfied, the sangheili did the same with the plasma pistol strapped to his side, and then the grenades as well. Content that his weapons were in working order and his carbine mags secure, he looked at the two humans and nodded. Julia gave a simple thumbs up signal, giving Kiel a few seconds to ponder its meaning as the Pelican activated it's landing gear and the craft's systems began to power off. Rene instinctively took point as the blood tray parted, and the Spartan leaped into the morning sunlight of Tundra, her boots landing with a _thud _into the loose dirt underneath. Julia immediately followed and waved Kiel over as the sangheili strode onto Tundra's surface. He examined the area in which Rene decided to put down the Pelican, what the humans called a "landing zone" or LZ. The Pelican touched down near the base of a small ravine; Kiel could make out a tiny stream ever so slightly cutting its way through compacted rock. The location gave the vessel decent camouflage from unwanted eyes, and it wasn't too far away from the small team's target area. Kiel must have been lost in thought because he felt a human hand nudge his shoulder, "C'mon Kiel we're moving out."

The dumbfounded sangheili turned around to see Rene already standing atop an incline adjacent to the Pelican holding her rifle, and Julia gesturing him forward with her battle rifle. _Just a moment ago this female contemplated killing me, but now acts like nothing ever happened. Humans definitely are unusual creatures. Still, why did Unone need me to... _"Let's go you lazy bastard we got work to do!"

The unlikely trio trekked across rolling grasslands with plants and insects buzzing about that Kiel had never laid eyes on. In some small measure it reminded him of the wilds of Antan, where he and his two brothers always adventured after each day's mandatory combat training. Unone was the most reserved of the three, but Kiel always thought it had to do with him being the eldest and therefore he needed to set an example for his younger siblings. Jarul being the whelp of the three had always been the eager one, desperate to explore the vast reaches of Antan far outside the safety of the keep_. _The Kaidon had warned the trouble-making brothers of their foolishness to wander outside the boundaries of the keep. Of course they never listened to the wise old Kaidon; they simply dismissed the elder sangheili as being merely paranoid. Looking back on those memories, Kiel now knew the dangers of straying too far from one's keep. The untamed wilds of Sanghelios were home to some fierce predators and poisonous insects; no place for three whelps who had barely learned the basics of swordsmanship. His childhood daydreaming ended abruptly as the team ascended to the crest of a large incline covered in knee-high grass. Rene sharply looked back at the two and gave the universal halt signal, simply a single hand extended outwards with the palm facing forwards. Kiel stopped in his tracks cradling his carbine with both arms. Julia brought up the right flank of Rene atop the hill and Kiel crept to the Spartan's left; now he was prone as he finally approached the very top and in-between the tall blades of grass he saw what halted their progress.

From their position, the trio overlooked a steep decline in elevation which led into a massive opening into a series of large foothills that bordered a vast stretch of forest. Situated all around the immediate proximity of the cavernous entrance were a handful of Kig-Yar. Kiel detested the sight of the opportunistic aliens and more clearly understood why the humans dubbed them Jackals. The little fiends never interacted much with the sangheili, maybe because they sensed they couldn't loot them of their valuables. Kig-Yar rarely made appearances on Sanghelios back when the Covenant still existed. The avian-reptile creatures hardly were zealous or particularly loyal to the Covenant in the first place and Kiel suspected without the Prophets to keep them in check, their species would once more take up pirating and mercenary work. The Field Major counted fifteen Kig-Yar guarding the entrance armed with carbines and needle rifles. Rene suddenly declared in a silent voice , "we have permission to eliminate all potential hostiles. The coordinate data from Wallace ends right around that cavern opening. We need to take them out fast and see what their guarding in there before reinforcements arrive. Julia," the Spartan turned towards the ODST, "remain in this position and eliminate as many of those Jackals as you can with your sniper rifle. Me and the Field Major will advance and hit them right up the middle. On my go."

The Spartan took a cautionary gaze below the hill, took a fraction of a second respite and slid down in a haze of dust and rock. Kiel took one last look at the prone figure of Julia before following suit. Rene must have gave the signal on a private COM channel because just as the sangheili's feet found purchase below the hill the resounding report of a sniper rifle cracked above him. Kiel rushed as fast as his muscles allowed and reached the first dumbstruck Kig-Yar mercenary. It had just enough time to make a horrible shrieking sound before Kiel smashed a cloven boot into it's midsection. He could feel the crunch of bone as the blow turned the alien's insides into a wet pulpy mush before he fired a single carbine round into it's skull, splattering the ground in purple blood. Two Kig-Yar hastily approached him and leaped over a makeshift barricade made of old Covenant storage canisters. The lead Jackal's head exploded in a shower of gore from a well-placed sniper round, and second took a barrage of carbine rounds in the chest from Kiel. Just as the bodies collapsed to the ground another gutsy Jackal revealed itself from cover and fired it's needle rifle at the imposing sangheili warrior. A burst of razor-sharp pink needles bounced off his shields just as Kiel rammed the butt of the carbine into the alien's throat causing a reactionary release of spittle. The Jackal's beady eyes glared at him as he violently forced the barrel of the carbine into it's struggling mouth and blew the creature's brains out in a splash of gore. "Get down!"

The bulk of Rene pushed into him and both tumbled into the dirt, just in time. The ghostly green projectile of a fuel rod cannon whizzed past mere inches from Kiel's previous position. Both the Spartan and the Field Major rolled into firing positions, brought their weapons to bear and let the fuel-rod cannon wielding Kig-Yar have it. Nine point five millimeter bullets and radioactive carbine projectiles tore apart the last standing Jackal in a cloud of expelled bits of blood and bone until the projectile-ridden corpse smacked upon the ground in wet chunks, dead. Kiel strode over to a wounded Jackal as Rene motioned Julia over from her sniping position. The alien squawked in fear as it lay desperately trying to reach a fallen needle rifle; thin blood-soaked fingers clawed into the colorless dirt near the cavernous entrance. Kiel viciously planted his boot upon the alien's shaking hand, crushing the bones inside and the Jackal let out a long cry of agony. The sangheili saw what brought it down; a projectile from Julia's sniper rifle nearly took the unsightly creature's right leg off. Kiel reached down and grasped it's skinny neck with his off-hand and raised the alien up to eye-level; the Kig-Yar clutched at the sangheili's mighty grip with it's unbroken hand. Kiel interrogated the bleeding alien in the sangheili tongue, "you are mercenaries, yes? What were you hired to do here?"

The Jackal's eyes darted behind Kiel; Rene and Julia approached the sangheili, each with their rifles at the ready. The Kig-Yar managed a throaty chuckle, "you... you serve _humans _too now, sangheili? I thought... I thought your _noble_ people are above that!"

Kiel's grip tightened and the alien spat a foul mixture of blood and saliva into his face, "What were you hired for fiend! Answer me!"

The humans behind Kiel whispered amongst themselves and shook heads as the Jackal spoke, "we Kig-Yar... we needed... _wanted _someplace to go... something to do. Human rebels... they can accommodate quite well."

The alien snickered loudly, to which Kiel didn't appreciate as his grip tightened further. The Jackal's maroon eyes began to bulge and Kiel shouted into it's face. "TELL ME NOW!"

The disobedient Kig-Yar managed one final screech before the Field Major squeezed his neck like a vice-grip before the tissue gave way and the creature's neck exploded in a shower of gore, splattering Kiel's crimson armor with purple blood. He dropped the bloodied corpse as Julia once more tapped his shoulder. "I promise Big Guy I won't get on your nerves enough to do _that," _she pointed at the Jackal, "to me, okay?"

Rene, seemingly unaffected by the exchange continued past Julia, "Let's get in here before more of their friends show up."

Kiel ejected his carbine's magazine and followed the two humans into the caverns. Something had awoken inside the Field Major, and as he slammed a new mag into the receiver he knew as long as he remained with these humans he could kill as much as he desired. And that simple revelation made him joyous indeed.


	13. Into the Fire

Chapter Twelve- ...Into the Fire

January 21, 2553

Sanghelios, State of Antan, Antan Keep

"Why! I do not understand your reasoning brother!"

Jarul's energy blade slashed a cruel arc of illumination in the otherwise darkened quarters of the Fleet Master. Unone's sword parried the blow sending auroras of electric blue shades in all directions. Jarul's ferocious countenance was mere inches away from Unone as both fought to shift their weapons to the attackers direction. Jarul roared at him again, "I know what you have done! You bowed to the Arbiter's wishes and sent Kiel into the humans' midst! For what? Are you intentionally attempting to corrupt his mind as well with your lies?"

Jarul lashed outwards with a vicious swipe, breaking the stalemate and sent the Fleet Master careening into the hard stone wall of his quarters. The impact sent Unone's curveblade tumbling off it's pedestal from his wall and onto his lap. _My old blade... funny. The last time I wielded the weapon was in a sparring match with Jarul. A drawn blade demands blood... _Sangheili curveblades had been used for many ages upon Sanghelios' vast reaches and mighty nation-states. Even long before the formation of the Covenant, sangheili curveblades were the principal weapons in a hunter's arsenal. After the Writ of Union between the San'Shyuum and Sangheili, the distinctive curvature of the blade later was adopted for the energy sword, though many Kaidons and lesser nobles of Sanghelios still kept the ancient metal swords in their halls, and for training of sangheili whelps. Unone could see the assassins flanking his brother shift with unease and anticipation. They yearned for his blood. Jarul leapt at Unone's distraction and brought down his energy sword with such force the Fleet Master doubted he could parry. But he did regardless. Unone's sword arm sprung from its momentary apathy and attempted a last-minute block of Jarul's mighty blow, meant to cleave him in two. The resulting flash of conflicting energy blinded both combatants for a mere second and was followed by a howl of agony. Unone watched as his brother staggered away from him; his entire sword arm was missing from his shoulder down. Bits of tissue and bone still clung to the grievous wound, though Jarul's arm was now sitting in a pool of dark purple blood, his energy sword still clutched in the dead fingers. Unone wearily retrieved his bearings and stumbled to his feet and approached the writhing figure that was his brother on his back, thick streams of blood spurted from the injury onto the Fleet Master's velvet carpet. "Well... I... I guess th- that that promise we made... guess it'll be fulfilled at last... brother."

Unone fell to one knee and surveyed the damage: Jarul had lost too much blood and he knew it. A single charcoal armored assassin rushed forwards and tried to seize the opportunity to complete his mission. The assassin's blade sparked to life with a _crack, _but soon halted as if a truck smacked into him. The sangheili lurched sideways as the distinctive curvature of Unone's hunting blade impaled the would-be-assassin through the abdomen. With a hearty roar the remaining assassins doubled backwards and exited the Fleet Master's quarters without second thoughts.Unone ripped the blade from the assassin with noticeable resistance, then the curveblade pulled free, stained dark violet. Jarul's one hand grabbed Unone's shoulder, and with all the strength left within he spoke as blood dribbled from his mouth. "You remember... don't you brother? The... promise. The promise... we m-made that day... in the arena? That's the real reason... the reason I accepted Zhal's request. Besides... a true Kaidon would never fall to... an assassin. _You _are a... a worthy Kai-"

The desperate struggle in Jarul's hand against his shoulder waned, and then it stopped altogether. His brother was dead. As the distressed Fleet Master rose to his feet, bloody curveblade in hand, Jarul's words echoed in his mind. _The promise we made? Yes the human Demon had nearly slain you Jarul, nearly slain me. Foolish Jiralhanae were being massacred by the human even as they charged mindlessly in hordes. And, all the while the Prophet of Truth sat in his little throne atop the balcony, silently observing the carnage with diluted contempt. But the promise was born from that conflict, and as a result my own kin lies slain before me, in my own quarters nonetheless, and by my hand. That human, was it such a wise choice to dispatch Kiel to... Does not matter now. I shall deal with the traitor amongst the elders first, this Zhal who was too cowardly to attempt to end my life personally. He will be punished, his line is in jeopardy. Not to mention he hired my own blood to do his dirty work. Pathetic to even think such weakness exists in my keep. _Unone's gaze stayed fixed on his brother's empty stare as once more his mind drifted effortlessly back into memories...

_High Charity_

Year 2545, Eight Years Ago

The sizzle of ionized air cracked around Unone as he barely evaded Jarul's daring attack with his energy dagger; the wounded sangheili lurched forwards and the dagger dug deep into the wall around the arena. The Shipmaster activated Jarul's sword and the blade of concentrated plasma snapped to life in his hand. "Jarul stand down! You are still a foolish whelp who yet has much to learn in the ways of combat. From the observation the balcony allowed me you were utterly defeated by the Demon! Were it not for the _timely _arrival of those brutish Jiralhanae, you would be face-down in a pool of your own lifeblood!"

Jarul staggered away from the wall; the energy dagger was still active along his wrist. "How dare you! I must finish off this mere human and I wi-" 

Unone swiftly stepped in front of Jarul and smashed the hilt of the energy sword into his face, knocking him into the dirt. "No, you must atone for your devastating failure at a later time Jarul. Yes, it is true you have dishonored the Antan blood, that blood is now spilled upon this very arena without slain foes in its wake. And somehow, in the future you _will _regain that honor, this I swear. Remember," Unone clasped his brother's arm and brought him to his feet, "you are _sangheili, _and more importantly you are Antan. It is within our very line to bring honor and glory to our name and you, and even through your defeat,you are no different."

Both sangheili turned their massive bodies in time to see a trio of Jiralhanae collapse; their furry hides toppled with dozens of bloody slash marks across their torsos. Surrounded by a ring of slain Jiralhanae the Demon stood vigilant, energy sword in hand. The human's armor now was noticeably damaged to its breaking point; countless gashes and dents pockmarked the strange green alloy. The human's visage was smeared with blood, some her own but most of it from the countless Jiralhanae she had killed. Unone glanced over to the balcony to see the Prophet of Truth's face contort with rage and disgust. Thousands of outraged Covenant civilians scattered from the observer tiers as the Hierarch spoke, and dozens of sangheili honor guard brought up all possible angles of attack around the Prophet. "Blasphemy! Heresy! How has the Demon slaughtered you fools like mere pups? This _human, _this cretinous living affront to the gods' themselves has slain you imbeciles? Guards, capture this Demon so that I can personally _remind _it how blasphemous and disgusting it's heretic species is!"

If the Prophet had noticed Unone and Jarul still drew breath, he obviously didn't care a great deal about it. The two sangheili gazed in amazement as _dozens _of the elite Lights of Sanghelios, Helios honor guard, protectors of the holy ones themselves, leaped from the balcony onto the dirt floor of the arena. The resulting resonant sound from nearly fifty collective sangheili landing sent shockwaves and shook Unone's teeth. All of the Helios wielded long pikes, energy staves, that crackled with power at the tip, which itself could slice through the thickest Covenant combat armor. Even the combat harnesses issued to Shipmaster like Unone couldn't measure up to the harnesses that the Lights of Sanghelios wore. Their pearl-white armor plates were illuminated by _High Charity's _"sun", a massive disk set above the holy Forerunner Dreadnought that reflected day-night cycles on terrestrial habitats of the Covenant. With unnatural superhuman agility, the Demon sprang from her position before the Helios could surround her and policed the gargantuan gravity hammer off the dead Jiralhanae Chieftain's corpse, dropping the energy sword in the process. A team of five Helios attempted to catch the human with her guard down, to no avail. The Demon swung the hammer like it weighed no more than a toy, and the Unggoy-sized stone head of the weapon collided into the midst of the group. Even from a distance, Unone winced as the sound of bone breaking from the anti-grav effect of the hammer. Five Helios were sent flying in every which way, one smacked into another mass of sangheili with a hard impact. But the Helios were relentless. Unone snapped his mandibles shut as the Demon fought unlike anything he had ever witnessed, swinging the huge hammer and slaying the supposedly most skilled warriors amongst the sangheili ranks. _Why have the Hierarchs ordered these creatures exterminated? Their nobility and fighting spirit never ceases, despite loss after loss to our superior numbers and weapons. I have battled against these humans for a long time now and I believe truly that the Prophets should allow them to follow the path of the Forerunners just like the rest of the Covenant. It just doesn't make sense..._

Suddenly a Helios grabbed the Demon from behind, knocking it's hammer to the dirt before it could unleash another devastating blow against their numbers. Unone gazed in amazement as the human broke the sangheili's choke hold with an elbow to his face, dropping the honor guard just as a duo tackled the Demon. The human smashed a mighty kick into one of the Helios, crunching it's chestplate and sent it twirling into the dirt ground coughing blood. Finally, one sangheili approached the struggling human with his energy stave and thrust it into her chest, immediately stunning the Demon into unconsciousness. The Shipmaster wearily observed the Helios as they snapped binding cuffs onto the Demon's hands and feet and dragged it into the open gate below the balcony, leaving dozens of killed Jiralhanae and Helios honor guard corpses bleeding in the arena. Unone took a double take at the balcony as he caught Truth eying the two brothers, then in a blur the Hierarch vanished from sight.

Unone swung Jarul's arm around his neck as they staggered towards the gate, and Jarul tried to speak but it sounded to the Shipmaster more like a throaty whisper. "Unone you must promise me something."

Unone wearily glanced at his brother's searching eyes and sighed, "yes brother, what is it?"

"That we will finish our duel, and next time one of us will fall."

Jarul let his words hang in the air and sink in as the two brothers exited the arena, bloodied but prepared whatever awaited them.


	14. Whispers in the Dark

Chapter Thirteen- Whispers in the Dark

January 30, 2553

0912 Hours

ONI Beta-7 Facility, Los Angeles, California, Earth

"So, what you are _trying _to tell me Amos is what exactly? That you have intentionally ordered our brand new Special Detachment Group into a goose chase after what _appears _to be an unlawful use of Naval Intelligence resources? For God-sakes General pretty close to half of ONI's existing programs would be classified as an illicit use of funds."

Brigadier General Amos Castle grunted with the same tone one would expect to hear from a mother scolding her children. Castle attempted to look the man in the eye across the roundtable, though the room was so dark that it made it impossible to actually see the person. Of course he knew who he was, along with the other two individuals seated around the table. Castle peered into the voice's general direction and stated, "that's quite convenient coming from you Singh. Now that ONI's backtracking and removing the dirt off itself via Section Zero, you're complaining. Got something you need to tell us here Rear Admiral?"

Castle had never been a fan of Navy-types in the military to begin with, but working in the Office of Naval Intelligence exposed him to spook Navy-types. And that was much worse. Lower Half Rear Admiral Jerrod Singh was one of the worst spooks, if one was to go by Castle's list. The man had been at the front and center of many of ONI's most notorious, and sometimes messy black operations in the last decade. For whatever reason, the rest of ONI turned a blind eye when he requisitioned hefty sums of credits and vast amounts of resources, all in the name of fighting the Covenant's encroaching presence. However, now that the war was over, Castle knew the man would be trying his hardest to cover up some of his more, _discreet _ops. And he knew ONI's refocus on Section Zero made him nervous. Before the agitated Singh could respond, a much older and wizened voice lofted in the still air of the meeting room. An icy-cold voice that could only belong to Margaret Parangosky. "Now let's not go off-course here gentlemen and stay on task. And that would be the matter at the forefront of our meeting today. Tundra, one of a handful of former UEG colonies that have proclaimed their independence. General," the chilling tone focused towards Castle, "it was MIL AI 1901 Wallace, attached to your SDG unit that confirmed the artifacts present on that world? The ones referred to in our database as "Xenoarcheology?"

Castle gulped nervously at the sound of the woman's voice, akin to the tone of Death itself. Admiral Margaret Parangosky was the commander-in-chief of the Office of Naval Intelligence. Some have said the sheer power she held surpassed that of Fleet Admiral Terrence Hood within the UNSC. The woman has been known to make uncooperative subjects disappear permanently, without a trace and that only a single person had ever crossed her and lived to speak about it. Rumor was, that the ONI chief had chosen a successor to her her "throne", though if she had Castle hadn't met the person in question himself. The General anxiously tapped his fingers on the metal table and said, "yes ma'am Wallace traced the unauthorized tap into an area not too far from the planet's capitol, Lincoln. As to the presence of Forerunner artifacts, Wallace could not say with certainty which is why I didn't inform our team. However, Wallace _was _able to pinpoint this person or persons as being affiliated with Section One. Needless to say, this party has drawn a considerable amount of assets and classified information from us, which is within Section Zero's operational parameters."

Another female voice came from Castle's left but it was much smoother and gentle than Parangosky with a strong Slavic accent. "So Section Zero's own little witch-hunt as finally commenced. My my this is getting very interesting General. I wonder what your SDG team will find on Tundra?"

Castle did not have to see the woman's visage to know who she was, as the two have previously met on multiple occasions. Marine Corps Colonel Nikita Aristov was imbedded neck-deep in some of ONI Section Three's more _quiet _ops. He knew the woman served with Naval Special Warfare, though he was unsure in what capacity. What he _did _know is that the Colonel had been on the front lines during the Covenant War's more devastating losses to the aliens, and had a permanent prosthetic left leg to show for it. Aristov had been sidelined from NavSpecWep and into more of a logistics role within Section Three. Castle smirked, "yeah it will be interesting won't it Nikita?"

Parangosky's icy words then permeated the situation, "on a different note Brigadier General, your chosen members of Special Detachment Group Zeta, please go over each member in detail."

Castle cleared with throat with a hearty exhalation and began, "well I will begin with Lieutenant Commander Anthony Fields-"

Singh blurted, "yes _please _tell us why you removed one of the more promising officers in the Prowler Corps for your little ragtag band of witch hunters."

"Rear Admiral, the next time you interrupt the General I will _personally _see to it that you are so far down into the darkest depths of shit that you will not be able to see the light of day. Am I clear?"

Parangosky was in no mood for childish antics, and Singh simply muttered silently to himself and groaned, "yes ma'am, I apologize ma'am."

"Please continue General."

Castle felt a bead of sweat drip from his forehead as he proceeded, "yes, Lieutenant Commander Anthony Fields _was _removed from his duty aboard the _Trojan Horse _in order to command the new VOS-Class Corvette _Valley of Shadows _prototype_. _This ship is to be SDG Zeta's base of operations while carrying out the missions that Section Zero assigns to them. He was selected because of his will to proceed forward with the mission despite the odds and difficulty; you may open the file on the February Incident of 2552 for my reasoning behind this decision. The Lieutenant Commander is the ranking officer of Zeta Team and has tactical and strategical command of the objectives required."

"I see," Parangosky let a long sigh escape her lips, "continue."

"MIL AI 1901 Wallace is a fifth-generation smart Artificial Intelligence created and programmed exclusively for Section Zero. Besides the now missing Cortana, Wallace is probably the most advanced AI available for ONI use. He had been encoded with the latest in cryptanalysis advances and hacking protocols, as well as the most recent database of the former Covenant languages and speech patterns. Wallace is also the only intelligence that has complete knowledge of the _Valley of Shadows' _schematics and capabilities. And he is also quite... spirited."

"Go on."

"Certainly ma'am. First Lieutenant Julia Vavilov of the 105th Shock Troops Division is a distinguished and decorated veteran of the Covenant War. She is one of the few ODST's to survive both the victory at Sigma Octanus IV, as well as the Fall of Reach, and not to mention the defense of Earth. Even though she only fought the Covenant for six years, she managed to acquire almost every decoration and medal available within the UNSCDF, including the Legion of Honor. I thought Section Zero could be greatly benefited with her skills and experience."

"Continue General."

"Yes ma'am. Field Major Kiel 'Antan of the Sanghelian Armed Forces was chosen because of a few reasons. One: our team may need a sangheili in order to get their message across clearly to any of the former species of the Covenant. If analysis indicated anything, it was that the sangheili language was the _de facto_ language of the Covenant, and most of its members understand and speak it. And while Wallace can speak in any of the aliens' tongues, it is useful to have someone who has in-depth knowledge of sangheili culture and traditions on hand, just in case. Two: as you all know ONI was confronted by the Arbiter himself about certain... consequences of the war. Having one of their kind helping us may ease tensions between Earth and Sanghelios. Finally, well... the Field Major's presence was requested by an interested party on Sanghelios. I'll speak more of this later."

Parangosky let out a long whistle, "okay General we'll discuss the alien's involvement in greater detail at a later time. If I'm correct, there is another on your team?"

Castle scratched his buzzed scalp, "yes ma'am, that would be Spartan-081. Having a Spartan on hand is obviously extremely beneficial to our cause, and I am entirely confident a soldier of her caliber will greatly increase Zeta Team's odds of success. However, the means of which Spartan-081 returned to active duty is very restricted ma'am, would you like to speak of this at a later time?"

The ONI chief's silently protested as she relaxed in her chair. "Yes General I would be intrigued as to what you have to say about that matter as well. However," Parangosky leaned so close to Castle he could see the ancient crags of her face, "you must realize that the _Valley of Shadows _and its... unique complement of crew will be reallocated to the _Infinity _project. As long as you are aware that at some date, in the near future, your SDG unit and it's prototype ship will be transferred to this monumental undertaking. Is that clear?"

Castle ran a hand through his shorn hair, "I fully understand ma'am."

One by one, without a single word spoken, each shadowy person seated at the table strode out of the room, and as they opened the door behind Amos Castle, crisscrossing patterns of light shone into the black room. Before he could, an elderly hand gripped his shoulder with such force that it could belong to a man in his twenties. The sharp and piercing eyes of Admiral Parangosky stared into his very soul and said, "I hope you know what you're doing Amos, because you're treading on some very thin ice and if you manage so slip up," the intimidating woman pulled him closer, "I don't even think I'll be able to pull you out."

With that, humanity's most feared and powerful individual promptly swung open the adjacent door, and then with a subtle click the light faded, and Amos Castle became enveloped by shadows once more.


	15. Focus

Chapter Fourteen- Focus

[LOCATION/DATE UNKNOWN]

Kai staggered forward, his palms sweaty with both an over-influx of adrenaline and sheer madness. Quickly, he ripped he blade imbedded from the dead Jackal below him and policed it's carbine off it's corpse. Although he was naked, the amount of alien purple blood smeared all over him made him appear like an ancient warrior from ages past, deadly and terrifying. Shaking off the momentary daze, he expertly checked the carbine's ammunition: the small holographic bar representing current ammo read nearly full. _Of course he managed to fire one. It didn't help the bastard any though. _A slight grin creased across the Spartan's bloody lips and realized he _wanted _to kill more. He imagined if this was akin to sexual ecstasy, this overarching desire. Except in his case, it was the need to kill. For whatever reason, his mind once more drifted to memories of Cay at the mere notion of ecstasy. _It doesn't make sense. Every Spartan was a brother and sister., each and every one part of a vast family brought together by the hardships of daily life on Onyx. We trained together, bled together, laughed at each other, and managed our losses as a team. Yet Cay... why is it so different? I've never once, ever since first laying eyes on her, never thought about her in the same way. She is just... unique. Something special. Whenever she's around, I feel strange, not like the others. An extreme desire to protect. And... and to comfort. Why?_ _Can we really... _The abrupt sound of an explosion rocked the very foundation of the long gray corridor Kai currently stood in. A gentle dusting of debris scattered to the floor, and the overhead light fixtures swayed back and forth in response. _Dammit, whatever the case I need to find her. If what that guy said id true, Cay's here and probably in pain... _At this thought Kai punched in the pale wall adjacent to him. To his surprise his fist penetrated deep into the material and pulverized it. A distant scream in the distance caused Kai's heart to skip a beat, "CAY! Where are you!"

The Spartan rapidly regained his bearings and ran at a brisk pace past the Jackal corpses that littered the floor. Another tremor rocked the structure of the hall, this time the point of impact felt much closer and more pronounced. Just as Kai rounded another bend, three terrified Jackals nearly collided with him. "Hey guys, whatcha doin'? We aren't, _running away _are we?"

The lead Kig-Yar screeched in Kai's face, which wasn't the correct thing to do when you faced an angry and possibly bloodthirsty adversary like a Spartan. The human, with his left hand launched a cobra-quick strike with the surgical blade. The cruel-edge of the weapon combined with Kai's unrelenting force nearly decapitated the alien, but it fell in a spray of blood all the same. A triumphant grin appeared on his face as the Jackals seemed to move in slow-motion; by the time Kai was upon them their rifles weren't even ready to fire. The Spartan shoved the short barrel of the carbine into the second Jackal's belly, and unleashed an onslaught of radioactive miniature fuel-rod projectiles into the creature. The alien seemed to wilt, then fly apart in gory chunks and spurts of purple blood. Using his forward momentum, the Spartan swung the carbine like a baseball bat at the last horrified alien. With satisfaction, he could feel the Jackal's weak skeleton shatter from the impact as the butt of the Type-51 impacted it's chest. Kai snapped the weapon back into his hands and fired a single projectile through it's skull, ending the last Jackal. Kai took a glance at his new, more capable physique. Muscles rippled beneath his bloodstained skin and contorted to form rock solid masses. He was also a few inches taller as well, he guessed he was somewhere north of six-four. He watched in amazement as a slight gash along his shoulder began to heal almost instantly, then the wound was gone, leaving no traces. _With this new, addition and the augmentations from Project CHRYSANTHEMUM, I might actually be on par with a Spartan-II. _With that in mind, Kai efficiently stripped the Jackals of their weapons and ammunition. Strapping crude bandoliers along his chest from the mercenaries, he policed both a needle rifle and a carbine, both with a plentiful of ammo along with a pair of plasma grenades. To his surprise, he found he could easily shoulder and use both the needle rifle and carbine at once, though decided against using two firearms at the same time. He was a sucker for accuracy, and simply slung the needle rifle along his back wielding the carbine in its stead. Kai took one last longing look at the surgical blade before discarding it, and continued deeper into the mysterious complex.

_What was it that the guy said? Super Cells? What the hell is a Super Cell? Is that what's making my body so... powerful? _Kai edged closer to the observation post, carbine at the ready. _This is where whoever it was talking to me was speaking from. _The Spartan sucked in a deep breath, then with a jolt of adrenaline stormed into the room. The only person, or rather _thing_, there to greet him was the towering bulk of what could only be a Brute. The gold-armored beast snapped it's head to measure up the human standing in his midst, then with a monstrous roar the alien charged head-on. The observation post wasn't all that roomy, filled to the brim to consoles and readings data. So, when the nine foot monstrosity chose to charge, there was little Kai could do. The Spartan fired a quick succession of rounds from the carbine, all to no avail. The projectiles bounced off the Brute's shields as the alien managed to headbutt Kai in the gut, knocking the wind out of him and sending him crashing into a monitor screen. The beast did not relent, and threw an open-handed swipe aimed for his face. Kai narrowly blocked the assault with his carbine, but after repeated hits the weapon snapped in half like a cheap plastic toy. The Spartan attempted to go on the offensive and tackled into the Brute with every ounce of strength he possessed. Unfortunately, the five hundred kilo monster simply bellowed a mighty laugh and grabbed Kai's shoulders with such brute force that he could feel his bones begin to dislocate and yield to the alien's vice-grip. Now eye-to-eye with the Brute, Kai managed a powerful headbutt of his own, merely dazing the monolithic alien but buying the human precious time to escape it's clutches. Just as the Brute regained focus, Kai, with a sadistic chuckle, ignited a plasma grenade and slapped the adhesive properties of the explosive upon the Brute's chestplate. The Spartan dove out of the post, just in time to hear the Jiralhanae scream in horror before the explosive detonated. What seemed like crimson paint splattered in all directions in a momentary flash of brilliant blue light.

Kai promptly stepped into the observation post, weapon raised in caution. Whoever had been speaking to him earlier was long gone, all that remained was the unsightly mess of gore splashed all over the interior of the room. _Empty, dammit I need to find Cay. That scream... _The Spartan ruffled through what remained of the equipment still active. Countless research papers on various topics, useless laptops, until finally his eyes halted over a desktop near the back of the post.

**ONI S-1 (Intelligence Division) CLASSIFIED AUTHORIZED EYES ONLY ENCRIPTION- BLACK...**

** JOINT RESEARCH INITIATIVE SECTION ONE/SECTION THREE**

** LOG 1 MAJOR (ALIAS) REAPER/ DECEMBER 2552**

_It is with great and triumphant success that we have now established a dedicated facility directly above and adjacent to the Forerunner complex. It is true that Tundra is outside UNSC control, and thus we must tread carefully here. That said, a tiny team of six researchers isn't exactly proper protection for a facility of this magnitude, and I was forced to invest in... less than "stellar" defensive measures. The Jiralhanae, although savage and brutish, were the first mercenaries hired on this dreadful independent (insurrectionists) colony. Of course we employed the Kig-Yar as well, their kind is best suited to mercenary enlistment anyways. Yes, a few of the head researchers had reservations about hiring former Covenant species so soon after the war. But, desperate measures must be taken to protect this complex's complete secrecy from... unwanted eyes. Rest assured, the aliens are proving most valuable, if not abrasive, and perform their duties to the letter (in exchange for credits and weapons of course). Our first excavations have begun promptly and within the desired time-frame..._

Kai wiped the perspiration building on his forehead, set his needle rifle on the metal table and continued reading.

**LOG 17 MAJOR (ALIAS) REAPER/ JANUARY 2553**

_Damn that woman! Parangosky's getting nosy and peeking into previously black material. I think she suspects something is off, as we have considerably drained the coffers of Naval Intelligence. Her suspicion isn't out of any noble cause however, all the woman cares about now is inciting a Sangheili rebellion and getting the Infinity project off its ass. I believe, if my sources are correct, that she has reinstated Section Zero. Just what we need, when we're so close to unlocking the true secret hidden within the installation literally below our feet. The sheer strength of the Jiralhanae allows them to excavate at an exceedingly fast pace. Nevertheless, the aliens will be eliminated once the manual labor is finished and everything finalized, at least those who have laid eyes upon the artifacts themselves. Can't risk this leaking..._

Kai simply stared in disbelief at the logs of this "Major Reaper." _An internal ONI scandal? Isn't this interesting. _The Spartan rapidly read what files remained.

**LOG 21 MAJOR (ALIAS) REAPER/ JANUARY 2553**

_Didn't I get lucky? A lone exfiltration craft en route to Earth. It had to make an emergency departure from Slipspace, presumably from drive failure, right on the edge of Tundra's orbit. It was a simple task of redirecting the pilot towards my "designated" LZ. What a fool. The only reason I concerned myself with the Calypso was because of its cargo. What a prize! Two badly injured Spartan-III's, the pet project of the late Colonel Ackerson and the mysterious conundrum that is Lieutenant Commander Ambrose. They were still in cryogenic stasis when the Kig-Yar dispatched the horrified pilot. That man was such a coward, but of course the aliens quickly eliminated him. I could not contain myself, I just had to begin the tests on the young Spartans almost immediately! _

Kai took a long look at the log and gulped down his rage. _So, this bastard told the pilot to land, killed him, then kidnapped me and Cay? What the hell did he want with us anyway?... Super Cells?_

**LOG 23 MAJOR (ALIAS) REAPER/ JANUARY 2553**

_Where to begin? These Spartans have had their frontal lobes mutated for the sole purpose of generating bestial instincts and reserves to unnatural amounts of stamina. It practically makes them immune to shock, at least temporarily. However, these "Gamma Company" Spartans, if not taking the proper medication, will be overcome by the mutation and will lose judgment and the capacity to reason. I wonder who dared to preform such... illegal procedures? No matter, what is important is the fact the samples retrieved from the artifact have produced outstanding effects on these two. The other test subjects were absolute failures, however these Spartans have received the Super Cells quite nicely. It drastically upgraded their physiques. Greatly increased muscle tissue, cardiovascular system is much more robust. In addition, it appears their senses have improved as well, and the Super Cells endowed a rather curious regenerative ability on them. Further tests must solidify these statements, although it was observed Spartan-G115 healed from a surgical blade incision in mere minutes, rather troublesome for surgical procedures. The potential is honestly.. quite staggering._

The Spartan forced himself to read the last available log on the computer.

**LOG 25 MAJOR (ALIAS) REAPER/ FEBRUARY 2553**

_Insanity. That's how the other researchers described me. "He's insane, he'll doom us all." Well, they were right, their doom did indeed come knocking on their doorsteps. It was an easy matter to coerce the Jiralhanae mercs to slaughter those hapless, backstabbing bastards. How could they leak the financial and research data so easily? I'm sure Parangosky's going to come running like a dog in heat now at the chance to dispatch the one whose drained "her" resources. And to top it off, both subjects have escaped confinement. Useless Kig-Yar couldn't even do their job at the most crucial time! Whats more; another unknown assailant(s) have breached the security of the complex! Time, it seems, is not on my side today. I didn't want to do it, but to "cover" my exit I will initiate the contingency plan. It will make headlines, I can see it already. "Independent Colony Destroyed by the UNSC." Oh, it will be a great show. And everyone's invited._

Kai could feel the pressure building inside, like the core of a star before it's fated supernova. "God dammit!"

He smashed the console so many times with his fist so by the time he finished, all that remained was an unrecognizable pile of junk. Silently, the Spartan noticed a locker filled with bland clothes of an unscrupulous nature of all sizes. _Guess I need to wear something. Don't really want Cay to find me butt-naked smeared with blood. Although... if she was naked... _Pushing the thought aside, he managed to find a drab Navy working uniform without a name tag. Finding it to fit his now-large frame, Kai threw on the clothes on in a rough fashion, and fastened on a pair of combat boots that managed to fit his large feet. The Spartan, focused on finding his comrade, wasn't prepared when he snatched his rifle off the table, exited the room and nearly ran headlong into the face of a menacing Elite warrior.


	16. Enigma

Chapter Fifteen- Enigma

February 1, 2553

0849 Hours

Subterranean complex, Tundra

"What is hell is this place? Any idea Rene?"

The monolithic Spartan in full MJOLNIR battle armor quickly glanced back at the over-curious ODST and gave the universal shrug. "Not exactly sure, but I doubt this place was built during Tundra's colonization. My best guess is that it was constructed as recently as a few months ago."

The trio carefully strode down a large bland hall, and it looked like the site of an alien massacre. Fresh Jackal corpses littered the dusty ground as pools of recently shed blood stained the area. Kiel approached one of the alien corpses and frowned, "hmm... it appears some of them were slain from carbine fire. The others," he pushed another with his boot revealing a near-headless Jackal, "were killed from blunt force. However, whoever did _this,_" he pointed at one body in which shattered bone stuck from it's torso, "was _strong. _Maybe rivaling my own strength..."

Julia nudged the Field Major gently and chuckled, "what's wrong Kiel? Afraid someone's more badass than you?"

"Humans..."

"Oh come on, get over yourself. We _humans _aren't so damn different from the _sangheili."_

Rene held back a smile from Julia's use of the warrior's pronounced tongue. Kiel's face was wrought with dismay, "please don't compare my kin with the likes of yours human, it dishonors my people. Human females, however are definitely-"

"Definitelywhat? Disgusting? Annoying? C'mon spit it out!"

Kiel released a gentle laugh, as gentle as a sangheili could muster. "No, some of you are... interesting..."

It sounded to Rene like Julia tried to contain her embarrassment, "is that so? I guess I'll take that as a compliment then."

The sangheili's features changed to a grin, "you should, human."

"Never thought I'd see the day when a split-jaw is trying to flatter me."

The Field Major bellowed a hearty chuckle, "you should know we sangheili warriors are adept at gaining a female's favor."

"Is that so?"

Rene simply stared in disbelief at the two conversing with each other. Not even a few hours ago the ODST wanted to kill the sangheili, and now she couldn't drag herself away from his side. The past hour on Zeta Team's mission clock was spent meandering through a maze of jagged bends through the caverns, and then out of the blue it seemed, at least to Rene, the beginnings of a massive complex built into the bedrock itself. Now, for the past half hour the unlikely allies traversed through the Jackal-infested facility. At least until they came upon the corpses of Jackals, many mangled and slaughtered in such a way Rene thought whoever did the deed wasn't working on all cylinders in the mental integrity department. _The bodies, they were savagely torn apart at times. Almost as if the person in question was... _"Hey Rene, you know what? I think purple looks great on you, really brings out your... gold visor."

The Spartan examined her armor to see splashes of Kig-Yar blood splattered on some of the alloy plates. "Thanks."

Julia simply gave the stoic Spartan a playful shrug, to which Rene didn't respond, but deep down let herself laugh a little. Suddenly the Field Major let out a deep guttural growl that reminded Rene of a panther about to pounce on it's prey. "An overwhelming scent of Kig-Yar blood... its source, however eludes me."

The ODST immediately snapped back to reality and approached Kiel, battle rifle at the ready. "Sure you're not smelling the blood all around us," Julia gestured at the Jackal corpses before them, "sorry to burst your manly sangheili warrior bubble, but I can smell this shit too."

"It would be quite disappointing if even your weak noses couldn't pick up a stench merely a unit away from you. However, what _I _detect is far from our current position, but its almost as if..."

Rene casually met Kiel's gaze and inquired, " as if what? Something wrong?"

"Follow! Quickly!"

Julia didn't even have time to protest before following in close pursuit of the two giants in front of her, running at a pace she considered a full-on sprint. Rene tagged along close behind the Field Major, rifle at the ready as they passed through multiple bloodstained corridors that looked like the equivalent of a Jackal horror movie. Kiel rounded another bend, before stalking upon what appeared like a entrance to the room. "The stench it is... close."

Julia grunted, "yeah how close?"

Before the sangheili could attempt a response, a massive blur smashed into his center of mass with velocity no _normal _human could muster and both tumbled into the far wall with a _bang. _Rene finally got a good look the person; he was big, easily six five and somewhere in the range of two hundred and eighty pounds. However, his movements were incredibly quick and his agility wasn't something just anyone could pull off. The man had a young face, but most of it was obscured with smears of Jackal blood, and he wore a simple Navy working uniform. Kiel attempted to snatch the needle rifle from his grasp, but was drawn into what appeared like a game of tug-a-war with the powerful human. Julia gasped, "so... you gonna break it up between them or what?"

Kiel managed to get a firm grip on the man's shoulders and forcibly throw him into the wall, knocking the needle rifle from his hands and sent it clattering next to Rene's boots. Just as the Field Major snapped up his carbine, aimed directly at the human's head did the Spartan step in between the two, needle rifle in one hand and her BR55 in the other. "Spartan, let me kill this whelp! A drawn weapon demands-"

"I don't really care Field Major, now back off and let me see who this guy is."

The sangheili let out an bestial snort, "fine, but if he," Kiel gestured at the young man slowly getting to his feet, "attempts to attack me again he will die by my hands."

Rene's expressionless helmet rotated towards the mysterious human before her. For whatever reason, he let a sheepish grin form around his bloodied face. "So, you're a Spartan-II. Huh," he gazed in awe at the seven foot armored figure, "thought you'd be _taller_."

His fiery hazel eyes followed the Field Major as a took a place next to Julia, the alien's yellow eyes stared him down with a fervor. Rene took a single, cautious step and inquired, "who are you? And why are you wearing a Navy uniform without a name, rank or serial number attached?"

The young man chuckled and shook his head, "well, _technically _I'm Navy, though his isn't my actual uniform. Since you are obviously a Spartan, guess its okay to spill the beans on this little secret. I'm," his expression suddenly turned serious, "a Spartan too, though I'm not a II like you. Petty Officer Third Class Spartan-G115 at your service, though you can just call me Kai."

Rene shuffled a bit in her armor, which Kai somehow detected because he said, "so us III's aren't mainstream knowledge yet? Guess that's to be expected."

Rene silently cleared her throat and stated, "I'm Senior Chief Petty Officer Rene-081," the Spartan gestured to the ODST and her sangheili comrade, "that is First Lieutenant Julia Vavilov and this is Field Major Kiel 'Antan of Sanghelios."

Kai, now fully recovered from his scuffle with Kiel stood not even a meter from Rene. "Mind tellin' me what that _thing _is doing with you guys?"

Enclosed within her MJOLNIR helmet, Rene shot the supposed Spartan a curious glare. _Does he even know the war's over? _Kiel let out a snarl directed at the Spartan-III, and in return Kai clenched his blood-encrusted fists. Rene abruptly stepped in front of Kai, "first of all Petty Officer _Third Class, _do not ever assume you can ask me a question whenever you feel like it. You _will_ follow the chain of command. Is that clear?"

Deep in her gut, Rene knew that wasn't fair. After all Julia outranked her, yet didn't call the shots and followed her lead. However, the Spartan didn't back down. "_He _is the enemy! Don't tell me those monsters are even allowed with a damn light-year of Earth!"

Before Rene could even respond, the ODST took over. "Listen Kai, I didn't like it, hell I still cringe at the thought, but the Elites do have a ceasefire with us. Kiel here actually isn't all that bad, trust me I know."

Kai's head drooped towards the ground, "so.. it is true isn't it? The war's really over then..."

The massive sangheili warrior sighed, "why must humans call us _Elites _still? We are Sangheili, warriors of -"

"Yeah yeah I get it Kiel, just trying to relate to our new-found Spartan here."

"Humans..."

The MJOLNIR-armored Spartan handed Kai the needle rifle and nonchalantly placed a gauntlet on his shoulder."Listen we're... part of a Special Detachment Group sent here by the Office of Naval Intelligence to-"

Suddenly Kai perked up, "wait did you say Office of Naval Intelligence?"

"Yes why-"

Kai angrily shook his head, "because some ONI spook's responsible for my being here as well as another Spartan from my team. Listen, you have to help me find her-"

"Slow down Spartan and tell us what you know. The only reason we're here is to investigate a suspicious data tap... and," Rene considered her words, "ONI resource withdraws."

By this time, both Julia and Kiel moved closer to Rene, watching the Spartan-III intently. "That so? Cause what _I _know you probably don't."

Zeta Team silently listened to Kai's tale, beginning with his and Spartan-G034, Cay, deployment to Tuwan in November of 2552. Rene simply nodded as she listened to their harrowing combat against entire battalions of Covenant forces, their sabotage of Covenant supply lines, and finally the assassination of the minor Prophet in his spire and the destruction of their base in the jungles of Tuwan. Then, came the darker part of the story, Rene guessed because the Spartan himself had trouble retelling it. His agonizing awakening, the sadistic voice and his escape from confinement, the strange explosions , and in the process the slaughter of many Jackal mercenaries by his hand. Finally came the part of his discovery of the revealing data concerning one "Major Reaper" of ONI and his illicit operations on Tundra, not of course before Kai blew the Brute in golden armor to pieces. At the mention of the incriminating logs, Rene had inquired, "so, where is this computer now?"

Kai crossed his arms as if to hide his shame and sighed, "well, I kinda smashed apart. You have to understand I was more than a little pissed off at the time. Hinge-head there can attest to that," Kiel growled at the Spartan with bared fangs.

Julia patted Kiel on the shoulder roughly and asked, "so this Reaper guy's the reason we're really out here?"

Rene responded sharply, "no I don't think ONI knew he built this place. However.. it seems there are more questions than answers now. Such as these "Super Cells", this artifact and this supposed contingency plan of his. Only way to find out," Rene shouldered her BR55, "is to keep moving deeper in this complex."

"Please, I need your help to find my Spartan. She's here... somewhere."

Julia got the jump again on Rene and jokingly added, "if she's as tough as you, I doubt she's in a fuss. Don't worry though, we're bound to cross paths with this "Cay."

Rene tightened her grip on the BR55 and motioned for her team to move out. Whatever else she _did_ know, she knew for a fact Zeta Team was about to hit a snag, or already had.


	17. 16807 Bereaved Attestation

Chapter Sixteen- 16807 Bereaved Attestation

February 1, 2553

Forerunner Complex, Tundra

"Greetings. I am 16807 Bereaved Attestation. I am the Monitor of Installation 06. What query do you pose, Reclaimer?"

Reaper's face glowed with unparalleled satisfaction. _In all my years, never would I have dreamed... _The ONI Major gave the floating construct a devious grin and stared at the lime-green illumination that gave the metal sphere a ghostly aurora. "So, is this," he took a lengthy gaze around him, "your _Installation 06_?"

The construct's almost fantastical regal voice sounded and echoed throughout the complex surrounding him. "Why, of course not Reclaimer. This complex was designed to, in a manner of speaking, to study the Flood. However, this was before my makers decided it best to contain the parasite on the Array. This complex is the last surviving antique of an age... long past."

Reaper's jet-black boots clanged against the strange Forerunner alloy beneath his feet as he took a step closer to Attestation. "If that's the case, why does this particular complex remain, and why are you here and not on this "Installation 06?"

The radiant light that was Attestation's "eye" dimmed for a split-second before responding, "my protocol demanded I protect this facility as well, in addition to my Installation. My makers never had an opportunity to dispose of this complex and it's dangerous specimens. As such, it is _not _in my protocol to let any harm come to this place."

"So, how did you arrive at this "facility?"

The construct slightly titled it's body, "why, I installed a Slipspace containment field, essentially what, in your language, you would call a "portal."

"And I'm guessing that's what that," he gestured to the twirling vortex behind Attestation, "is, correct?"

"Why of course, Reclaimer."

Reaper tried to contain his near-endless delight at all these new revelations all at once. "So, Reclaimer. What exactly is a _Reclaimer? _And why do you keep addressing me as such?"

Attestation gently sputtered close to Reaper and exclaimed, "you do not know? How could that be? My makers had granted your kind the Mantle before they themselves were ultimately destroyed by the Halo Effect. As such, it _is _the Reclaimers right to take up the Mantle, and all the responsibilities and burdens that entails."

"And what exactly is this _Mantle?"_

"I am thoroughly astonished that you, a Reclaimer, does not know what the Mantle is. After all, it was _your _kind who claimed they were the rightful guardians of this galaxy, and all the life within."

Reaper put his gloved hands on his hips and sarcastically shook his head. "Are you malfunctioning or something? How the hell did we _humans _claim ownership of this "Mantle" you speak so highly of? Whatever, that doesn't really matter I guess, at least right now. Bottom line is, I need access to the rest of the Flood specimens. Got something... special in mind."

Attestation abruptly levitated not a foot from Reaper and exclaimed, "no! No, no, no! You will _not _gain clearance to the parasite! It is-"

The ONI agent simply laughed in the Monitor's face, "you do realize I've _already _taken samples of this "Flood?" I know exactly, in great detail, what the your "parasite" is capable of. Of course these samples weren't virulent enough to cause complete infection within my test subjects. But," he stared down Attestation, "I _have _isolated what my Naval Intelligence dubbed "Super Cells" and have successfully spliced them into two separate humans. The results were... truly fascinating! I can't believe you, _16807 Bereaved Attestation_, aren't impressed with my work! Show some enthusiasm!"

For at least twenty full seconds, the Monitor hovered in front of Reaper, no doubt trying to formulate a response. Then, out of the blue, "you, you are a most disturbing Reclaimer! No wonder my makers destroyed your civilization! You _humans _have no regard for protocol whatsoever!"

"Ah, so I touched a nerve there I see, with you finally calling me _human. _Listen "Monitor of Installation 06", I'm going to go over, in great detail, what my plan is, and you _will _obey? Is that clear enough for you?"

An eerie maniacal chuckle erupted from the Monitor before it settled it's gaze back on Reaper. "You are a foolish Reclaimer. Why do you insist? It is not within protocol to-"

A slight grin materialized on the ONI agent's face, "to do... what? What's so atrocious to simply listen to me, a Reclaimer as you put it? Your _protocol _is, sorry to say, outdated bud. Your only sensible choice, my dear little Monitor, is to adapt to the _now. _Honestly, protocol nearly got our eventful Milky Way nearly consumed by the Flood, not too long ago."

Obviously, Reaper managed to prey on Attestation's weakness because he wearily questioned, "Consumed? How? When?"

_Got you now you floating piece of junk. _"You haven't been reading the paper have you? A little incident, which involved Installation 04 being destroyed by a Spartan, all because of another Monitor's interference, well that's how one of our constructs put it in the debriefing. Whats more, is that a bunch of radical aliens enabled the Flood to escape yet _another _Installation, infest their ships, all which led to a little event at a place we know as the "Ark."

Attestation shouted now, "the Ark! The Flood was... was allowed to actually _infest _the Ark itself?"

_Oh yeah, he's taken the bait. Won't be long now... _"Nearly, it was close, too close. The point I'm tryin' to make Attestation, is that it was the Monitors that _allowed _the parasite to eventually spread. If what I know about the Halos is true, then your makers made a terrible sacrifice to save our pathetic galaxy. But, the Monitors nearly failed. And all because they _followed _protocol. Now," he glared at the Monitor's eye with a mischievous smirk, "do you _really _want to continue following your antiquated protocol? Or, do you want help me... _safeguard_ the galaxy the "Forerunners" died to so desperately protect?"

Suddenly, Attestation's eye began to flicker to a deep crimson, creating a horrible mixture of red and green illumination. "My... my makers... I need to follow... protocol..."

Reaper observed with glee, "no, no you don't Attestation. What you _need _to do, is obey _me._ I know what I'm doing, I _will _do a better job than your "protocol" ever did. All you have to do is... let go."

He carefully stepped backwards as the construct began to spark bright flickers of energy, and his aura shifted between vibrant green and luminous scarlet. "I... I am 16807 Bereaved Attestation... Monitor of... Installation 06... I.. I..."

Without a another word, the conflicted Monitor's anti-grav field failed and the alloy sphere clattered upon the Forerunner metal, all signs of illumination ceased. Reaper took a disappointed glance at the Monitor and sighed, "well, I had high hopes for this little guy. Well at least now I ca-"

Suddenly, the construct's alloy casing shined the most brilliant shade of scarlet red Reaper had ever seen; his Reconnaissance helmet had to compensate for the sheer amount of light emanating from the Monitor. The construct's overpowering aura faded, however, but the scarlet illumination remained around it's casing and "eye", a stark contrast to the lime-green from earlier. What had most changed to Reaper was the Monitor's vocalization; it was now somewhere along the lines of a mythological god. "I AM 16807 BEREAVED ATTESTATION, MONITOR OF INSTALLATION 06," the now clearly rampant AI turned to face a surprised Reaper, "YOU WILL TALK AND I SHALL LISTEN, CREATOR."

The human let out a long hearty chuckle, "now, _that's _what I wanted to hear Attestation. My first command to you however, is that you tone down your damn voice. Although... I like being called Creator. Makes me feel special."

Attestation's pondered his command for a half-second before replying, "Of course Creator. Does this volume suit your current needs?"

The AI's voice was still akin to a god, though it didn't make Reaper's ears begin to burst. "Yeah, that will do just fine. Now, on to business, " Reaper strode past Attestation and let his hand feel the smooth alien alloy along the portal, "the rest of the Flood specimens. Where are they?"

"Creator, if you would follow me I shall take you to the main containment cell."

"Splendid."

The duo made their way past the large portal and down a winding path deeper into the complex. Reaper marveled at the Forerunner architecture, built was accents of luminous blue bands that occasionally glowed and a creaseless yet durable unknown alloy. "Creator, if you don't mind me inquiring, what do you plan to do with these samples?"

Just as Attestation led him past a massive antechamber Reaper responded, "no I don't mind you asking questions, but don't make it a habit. On your topic, I plan to release the Flood on this worthless colony, particularly, at least at first, this world's major population center Lincoln."

Without missing a beat, Attestation said, "you would doom your own kind to the parasite?"

"I honestly care nothing for them, besides their just pitiful Insurrectionists mostly and former Covenant aliens. However, it will serve as one hell of a distraction while we delve into more important matters. We need not concern ourselves with the Flood, not for a while anyhow."

The Monitor then stated in a serious tone, "are you confident the rest of the Reclaimers can contain the eventual outbreak?"

"Of course, once ONI gets a whiff of the "crisis" on Tundra, which they undoubtedly will, they will obliterate the colony to make sure the Flood is contained. Which is the beauty of my actions; the other colonies will get news of Tundra's destruction and this will hasten another Insurrection that will keep the UNSC busy, hopefully dismantling it all together. But that is simply wishful thinking. The only reason I came here was because of a rumor this planet housed artifacts, but now... now everything I could have ever dreamed for came true. With the discovery of Flood, those Spartans, but the real prize was you, Attestation. And our destined location, Installation 06."

Finally the two entered a vast room, filled with rows of bubbling liquid tubes. Reaper turned abruptly to the floating Monitor, "I assume these containers house spores, correct?"

The rampant AI drifted to one container and declared, "yes Creator, each houses a single Flood spore. One such is capable to infest an en-"

Reaper interjected sharply, "the reports from UNSC personnel participating on actions on both Installation 04 and 05 claim to have encountered a "Sentinel", some kind of machine drone. Are there any currently stationed at this specific facility?"

"Yes Crea-"

"Good. Order them to _safely _move these spore containers and disperse them in Lincoln City. It's hard to miss, filled to the brim with potential infection vectors..."

"Of course Creator, I've known of the Reclaimers existence on this world for some years now. It will be simple to direct the Sentinels to your desired coordinates."

Reaper nodded as he watched dozens of Sentinel machines flutter from the sides of the ceiling from designated openings, like maggots spilling from a decomposing corpse. "Creator," the AI zoomed past his peripheral vision, "follow me. You must upgrade your current Combat Skin, which currently rates as a Class-I. You must be outfitted with at least a Class-XII Combat Skin to ensure you do not become a potential host for the Flood."

"Yes, but lets make this quick. We have much to do Attestation."

Reaper smiled to himself as he observed the Sentinels pluck the containment capsules one by one and drift past him. _It is ironic. He is about to unleash the Flood upon an unsuspecting colony, becoming essentially what he was designed to protect against. It makes no difference when it comes down to it though. A means to an end. And once this is finished_, _on to the greatest prize of all, Halo. __And every single secret that lies within._


	18. Kaidons and Servants

Chapter Seventeen- Kaidons and Servants

February 2553 [HUMAN DESIGNATIONS]

Antan Keep, State of Antan, Sanghelios

Antan Keep was on fire. Flames licked and scorched the ancient walls of the Keep with a sickening blackness that only seemed to spread and long plumes of thick smoke rose from the once-pristine fortress. Antan's defensive forces had been rallied, but the struggle raged on. A conflict pitting sangheili against sangheili. Unone quickly darted from cover; just in time. The plasma launcher made slag of the pile of fallen rampart. The Fleet Master expertly dodged a second volley from the weapon, not an easy thing to accomplish out in the open where the launcher's systems could track it's target. Now within suitable distance from his assailant, Unone barreled into the cobalt-armored sangheili just as he fired the launcher a third time, sending twin bolts of superheated plasma racing to the bright sun that enveloped the midday of Antan. The whelp threw a powerful punch directly into Unone's face as both tumbled onto the courtyard of the Keep. The Fleet Master responded with a crushing armored knee to the assailant's lower mandibles, dazing him long enough for Unone to activate his energy blade... and to drive it's twin blades of shaped plasma into the whelp's chest. "Fools, you should have known better to dare attack _my _Keep."

With a cough, the young sangheili angrily yelled, "we, the Servants of Abiding Truth shall root out heresy whenever, and wherever it can be found!"

With a abrupt pull, the Fleet Master ripped the blade from the mortally wounded sangheili, sending spurts of blood onto his golden armor and silencing the Servant instantly. Unone got back to his feet still gazing wearily into the young sangheili's eyes. _Like Jarul's, full of youthful energy and the burning passion for adventurism. These Servants of Abiding Truth are a piece of work. _Even before the sangheili formed the Writ of Union with the San 'Shyuum, the ancient sangheili worshiped Forerunner artifacts with reverence. It is the main reason they fought the San 'Shyuum, over religious differences regarding the use of the ancient's technology. The mainline sangheili belief at the time prohibited use of Forerunner relics to reverse-engineer to better suit Sanghelios' needs, even though the planet was in abundance of the technological marvels. They believed they didn't need to desecrate the "holy relics" to fight against the San 'Shyuum. This is where the Servants of the Abiding Truth, the Neru Pe 'Odosima in the sangheili tongue, draw their legacy. _Pathetic fundamentalists, thinking they know what is best for Sanghelios. How can they not see? The Forerunners are not gods, they didn't transcend to the heavens! There is no Great Journey!_

Of course, at one time Fleet Master Unone Nar 'Antan was one of the most zealous of the Covenant promise in the Great Journey. _But... so was the Arbiter. He was a zealot, a tool of the Hierarchs to use as they saw fit. He burned countless human worlds, annihilated their fleets and paved the way for their near-extinction. And I was right there by his side, his Fleet of Particular Justice and my Fleet of Courageous Radiance._ _How much the humans truly lost during those dark times, and yet they never gave up. Like true warriors... _Unone observed as enemy Spirit and Phantom dropships flew into the Keep's midst, darkened by the black smoke rising from the rubble. Suddenly his emergency COM channel flickered to life, "Kaidon more of the Servant's forces have engaged our defenses," he heard his warrior struggle, " there are many Excellency! What are your commands!"

Unone took one last glance at the slain sangheili at his feet before moving back into his Keep, "keep them occupied. I still have a meeting to take care of with the Council... I will dispatch the traitorous coward among the Elders, then I will assist your efforts."

"Of course Kaidon, we will slay as many of these zealots as we can."

Unone briskly made his way up the stone Keep that was Antan's heart, passing into a long hall that shuddered as the Servant's assault intensified. He made a longing observation of his family's battle saga, etched in the living stone of the Keep itself, filled with his long line's history and it's most valiant members' deeds. Another tremor rocked the Keep's foundation, and a few loose stones broke free from the structure above him and toppled to the floor. Unone, after taking a last look at the family saga, entered the Keep's council chambers. It was the largest interior room within Antan Keep; usually its stone walls were spotless and glowing. Now, an unsightly dust coating layered the room, and the massive raised table that jutted from the middle of the antechamber. There sat six wizened sangheili, Unone's Elder Council who advised him on governing his lands and ruled in his stead if he wasn't present in Antan itself. Each Elder's face had some degree of nervousness on their faces as the Keep once more shifted from an attack. The Fleet Master strode over in front of the table and scanned each face until his eyes halted over Zhal's troublesome visage. "Now Council Elders, I do know our Keep is under attack. However," Unone began to pace back and forth with a predator-like gait, "i must settle a most grievous matter currently at the forefront of my mind at this time. One of you," his vibrant yellow eyes stared down Zhal, "has ordered an assassination attempt on my life. And, conveniently, the day I scheduled our meeting was the day, today, that the Servants of the Abiding Truth launched a surprise raid against _my _Keep! For your own sake, the traitorous dog that is behind this treachery reveal yourself, and prepare to die by my blade. You can choose to defend yourself, though I doubt you will best me in a duel."

The Elders all gasped at these new revelations, all except the wizened countenance of Zhal, who tiredly sighed and began to stand from his seat. The sangheili's wrinkled skin was no longer a youthful dark brown, but was more similar to a gray color. The Elder's beady brown eyes blinked in careful meditation before his gaze at last settled on the massive golden Kaidon before him. The Keep once more groaned and shuttered in response to an attack, which sent flakes of dust scattering towards the ground like fresh snowfall. The Elder cleared his throat and proclaimed, "yes, it was I who ordered our Kaidon's death. And I also allowed the Neru Pe 'Odosima access past Antan's main defenses as well. Yes I am the culprit our Kaidon is searching so desperately for."

One shocked Elder exclaimed, "why! Why would you even consider such an heinous act? Have you no shame!"

Zhal projected both of his hands towards Unone and shouted, "why? Why? Because this _Kaidon _is an imbecile! He would reject our lord's divine blessings and gifts to become another one of the "Arbiter's" puppets! He," his elderly fingers shook violently aimed at the Fleet Master, "is no true sangheili Kaidon! He would follow the Arbiter and his blasphemous accusations and reject a millennium of tradition!"

Unone took a confident stride towards Zhal and growled, "but, was it worth allowing these Servants to kill our brothers and sisters in their own Keep! You are the fool here Zhal, and soon your blood will be spilled upon my Keep! And, as payment your lines' saga will be erased from the records and your line will be exiled to ferment their traitorous genes in some other State!"

"My line has been evacuated by the Servants; they will continue their fight to protect the gods legacy against fools such as you and the Arbiter! No matter what you do with me, the Neru Pe 'Odosima will slay you," then Zhal pointed at all of them, "and _all _of you who forgo the old ways!"

Unone activated the hilt grasped within his large hand, and with a sizzle the twin blades of superheated plasma took form and shape, and illuminated the furious Kaidon's saurian face. "Is that all you have to say Zhal, before my blade pierces your hearts?"

The distressed Elder suddenly whipped out an overcharged plasma pistol from within his long flowing multicolored robes with a devious chuckle. The other Elders scrambled from their seats, horror and surprise summarized their faces, mandibles contorted with fear. "Oh no... no, no, no you will not kill me! Tell me, before you die, how did it feel to slay your own brother? Your own kin, how terrible it must have been. From what I know, your last remaining brother has left to aid mere _humans. _How utterly miserable you are "Kaidon." Just know," the glowing ball of energy shook with force in his hands, "your keep belongs to the Servants of Abiding Truth now, _Kaidon."_

With that, Zhal released the overcharged bolt of plasma that sped towards Unone with the intent to either incapacitate or kill him. Before that could happen however, another elderly figure suddenly leapt to shield the Fleet Master from the blast. The Elder took the impact to the chest, and screamed in agony as he collapsed upon the Keep floor. Unone took the chance; as Zhal fired inaccurate bursts from his pistol, the Fleet Master closed the distance and lashed out with the energy sword. The vicious swipe cleanly sliced Zhal's astonished face in two halves, and his withered body smacked onto the stone, dead. Without paying heed to the remaining Elders too shocked for words, with haste, Unone approached his fallen Elder who shielded him from Zhal's wretched plasma. The Keep once more shuddered, and Unone could hear the whine of Banshees resounding throughout the halls of his Keep. "Kaidon," the Elder's bloodied fingers clasped his wounded chest and blood dripped from his mandibles, "come... come closer. Please."

Unone dropped to his knees and raised the mortally wounded sangheili's shoulders, "you are a true sangheili Uruk."

The Elder managed a slight grin through weakened mandibles, "Kaidon, promise... promise me one thing. Protect this Keep, do... do not let these zealots... take this Keep. Do not... let them... let th-"

Uruk's muscles went limp, and his eyes rolled back into his head. Fresh dark purple blood slowly pooled around Unone as he stood, energy sword in hand. The other four Elders formed a semicircle around him as another, much closer explosion shook the Keep like an earthquake. "Uruk..."

One Elder clenched Unone's shoulder, "Kaidon what shall you do now?"

"What shall I do? What do you think Elders? I will protect my Keep with my life and slay each and every one of these opportunists. Make sure," he began to walk from the antechamber, "Uruk and all true sangheili that have been killed here receive a proper burial. I will not return here until these Servants are wiped from the face of Sanghelios."

Without looking back, Unone sprinted from the Council halls and past the wall of his family's saga, now covered in dust and debris. _Antan... everything that belongs to that name begins here, in this Keep. My family. My Keep. I am Kaidon, it is my duty to protect this place. And that is exactly what I will do. How wrong you were Zhal, this Keep will never fall to any enemy, at least while I still draw breath. _"Kaidon... Kaidon do you still live?"

Unone removed the dust from the saga pertaining to his ongoing stanza of his battle poem, still being etched into the living rock of Antan for all to see and behold. He activated the COM, "of course, did you seriously doubt your Kaidon?"

The young voice strained to formulate a response, "no... I never doubted you Kaidon. However, these aggressors have deployed another wave of reinforcements. We have held them at the Keep's entrance, but more seem to pour in every second, and our forces our slowly being whittled away-"

"Has anyone sent word to Vadam?"

"Yes Excellency but none have spoken with the Arbi-"

"Hold your positions, I'll be there soon."

"Yes Kaidon."

Unone promptly dashed down the hall towards his quarters; empty since Jarul's death. He entered his spacious quarters and his gaze fell upon his long-range communicator installed at the back of the room. Just as he reached the cone-shaped device another shudder shook the keep; near his balcony a squadron of Banshees sped past and unleashed their armaments undoubtedly upon his forces desperately trying to hold of the Servants. Quickly the Fleet Master tapped an icon representing Vadam's Kaidonship on the console, and almost immediately a holographic display of the Arbiter came into focus upon his stone floor. The Arbiter's orange-yellow eyes stared intently at the bloodied golden combat harness of the Fleet Master before him; the Kaidon of Vadam still donned the Arbiter's armor and its intricate curvy designs and flowing adornments. "Unone? What has happened? You look most distressed."

Unone mandibles tightened, "Arbiter, my Keep... it has been raided."

"By whom?"

"I was betrayed by my own Elder. He gave the Servants of Abiding Truth authorization past most of Antan's defenses. Now," another report reverberated throughout the Keep, "the zealots have launched an attack, all of my forces have engaged accordingly. But, somehow these Servants have acquired vast amounts of weapons and material, something they did _not_ have during our allegiance with the Covenant."

The Arbiter perplexed face met Unone's gaze, "I have already dispatched reinforcements to aid you Fleet Master. However," the Vadam sighed, "this isn't just occurring in your state. Nearly every state with friendly ties to Vadam is under siege across Sanghelios. It's a civil war Unone."

_What? How did this happen? When did these simple fanatics become so powerful? _Unone gritted his fangs, "has Vadam been attacked as well?"

"Not yet, I think these fundamentalists are saving... the best for last."

The Fleet Master managed a hearty laugh, "Hah! These fools have no idea who they've begun a war with!"

The Arbiter remained serious, "Listen old friend, the Servants have spies and agents almost everywhere; how else could they have launched simultaneous campaigns against multiple states in such a short time? Watch your back with these fanatics Unone, I fear they are much more powerful and clever than they appear. I must leave this discussion at that Fleet Master, but know I have dispatched some of my best units to aid in your battle."

Unone's mandibles formed a grin, "that may be however," the Kaidon's energy sword materialized and took shape within his grasp, "your forces will find nothing but slain fools when they arrive. And me standing amongst their broken corpses."


	19. Dramatic Irony

Chapter Eighteen- Dramatic Irony

February 1, 2553

1112 Hours

UNSC _Valley of Shadows_

In orbit around Dorum

Lieutenant Commander Fields leaned back into the _Valley's _command seat, his back eased into the form-fitting material without resistance. Wallace's holographic figure materialized to his right; the AI's sword was sheathed and the construct face was expressed with concern. Fields' gaze stared into the vast reaches of Dorum that stretched before him, the main viewscreens dominated by the moon's expanses of immense rainforests and oceans. The CO of the _Valley _sighed contently, "Wallace have you established contact with Zeta Team yet?"

The AI scoffed at this human's inquiry, "I have attempted to raise Spartan-081's COM channel for the past hour sir. Just... static Lieutenant Commander."

Fields casually tapped a few commands on his console, "any more visitors snooping around trying to say hello again?"

Wallace brushed a strand of hair from his eye, "only a few picket patrols wandering around Tundra's orbit, though they are few and far between. And, we are easily out of range of those plasma batteries. Besides sir, our stealth systems are fully active. I doubt anyone could find us even if they wanted to."

"Just in case, keep us in Dorum's orbit. Don't want the _Valley _limping back to drydock."

The AI chuckled, "With me at the helm Lieutenant Commander, the only things that will be gimp is our foes!"

"Of course Wallace. Keep trying to raise our team down there. Until then-"

Wallace's hue suddenly became lambent crimson, "Lieutenant Commander I'm receiving an emergency distress signal! Sir, it's originating from Tundra!"

Fields nearly jumped from his seat, "is it Zeta?"

"No... no it can't be. I've received both an audio and visual feed from the colony's capital Lincoln's municipal AI. Sir, you need to see this for yourself."

"Put it on the main viewscreen Wallace."

The first feed came from a fixture directly above what Fields believed was some kind of market. But it obviously wasn't running at full capacity. Skyscrapers were lit up in flames like torches, smoke lofted between buildings and more fires raged on the chaotic streets. Civilians and armed Insurrectionist guards ran for their lives and tumbled over one another in heaps. Fields could even make out some former Covenant races among them; Jackals scavenging on the run, Grunts in strange tunics carrying their methane tanks and the massive Brutes pummeling through crowds to escape. "What the hell are they running from Wallace?"

The AI, for once, looked dumbfounded, "I'm... I'm not sure-"

Suddenly, Fields witnessed the focus of their fear. An armada of what appeared like overinflated putrid balloons swiftly scurried into view from the edge of the camera's peripheral vision. The fleshy sacs washed over a mixed group of humans and aliens like a high tide. An icy chill rose up his spine as he heard agonizing screams from the camera's audio equipment. A squad of Insurrectionists armed with an assortment of old MA-series rifles and Covenant plasma weapons formed up around a couple of abandoned sedans on the street and fired into the oncoming mass of twisted flesh. Their initial volley sporadically smacked into the balloons' lines and popped innumerable amounts. Fields watched as it caused chain reactions, popping dozens more with each successful impact. But there were _thousands _of the head-sized little devils. Eventually, the squad leader ordered a retreat as most of the civilians had escaped that sector. Unfortunately, the creatures had them surrounded; Fields averted his eyes as he heard horrible screams and wails of suffering. "Sir... there's more."

The Lieutenant Commander refocused his vision on the screen, now an entirely different camera. This particular video emplacement was _much _closer to ground level, meaning Fields and Wallace got to see the carnage even closer. From a vantage point not to far above a once-crowded intersection, Fields got an almost perfect perspective as a small group of humans, mostly women and children, as they ran down the burning streets into view. Fields cringed at the sight of a frightened child, his clothes torn and tattered, holding onto his desperate mother's hand. Abruptly, multiple entities intercepted the ragtag group with impossible speed from the opposite direction. The things _looked _almost human, but horribly misshapen. Their broken necks hung at an unnatural angle, their skin was a sickly green pale. Red appendages protruded from their ripped chests and the creatures' arms seemed deformed in a way that resembled a scythe or bludgeon. The only adult man in the group charged at the figures with a wrench, yelling something Fields could not determine. The lead form met the man's blow head-on, then without even flinching it impaled the human upon it's appendage sending showers of crimson splattering in all directions. The other forms descended and surrounded the horrified group, and then proceeded with their dark intentions. Fields clenched his chair with a death-grip as mothers flung themselves before their children, then being ripped apart in bloody chunks. It made no difference for the young survivors that remained. He had to look away as haunting cries of pain sounded through the audio. A single tear managed it's way down the Lieutenant Commander's face before exclaiming, "Wallace shut that damn thing off! Please."

"Of course sir."

The screen snapped off and was once more was enveloped by Dorum's celestial appearance. Fields ran a shaking hand through his hair, "Wallace, con-... contact FLEETCOM now! Attach relevant video files with the message on the double!"

The AI's visage was wracked with genuine concern. "It's done Lieutenant Commander. That," Wallace's Scottish drawl was unusually soft, "that was the Flo-"

"I know... I know."

Fields wearily got out of his seat and braced himself against the railing of the bridge. "Zeta Team's still down there Wallace. And we," he smashed his fist against the dull gray paneling, "have no way to contact them! God dammit!"

Wallace silently observed as the CO punched clean through a minor viewscreen, it's shattered pieces scattered in every which way across the floor. Drips of blood from his hands formed small blotches of red upon the gray alloy below him. "Wallace... how long before your message reaches FLEETCOM?"

"With the _Valley's _slipspace COM probe, I estimate one to two weeks."

Fields' gaze shot up at the AI pedestal, "one to two weeks?"

"Yes Lieutenant Commander."

Fields shook his head, "Wallace... check our arsenal. I'm sure we have a Shiva on-board correct?"

"You realize _that_ alone cannot contain the Flood. It is too virulent and too dangerous. Anything short of complete destruction of this colony is unacceptable."

Fields sighed, "I _know that _Wallace. However, until help arrives, which won't be for a while, we need to make sure the Flood is not allowed to leave this planet. So," he tapped more commands onto his console and wiped his face roughly, "prepare the nuclear missile for imminent launch."

"And what about Zeta Team sir?"

Fields looked the AI square in the face, "you should know Wallace this just became a lot more complicated. We cannot risk the Flood leaving Tundra, period. Attempt one final communication link with their channel; tell them they have approximately thirty minutes to get off-world. After that..."

His voice trailed off, blending with the silence around him. "Scan Tundra with our sensors. Tell me if _anything _gets through it's atmosphere."

"Done."

Lieutenant Commander Fields stared into the blackness of space, wondering if the stars held anything but dangers, or anything but despair.


	20. Complicated Reunion

Chapter Nineteen- Complicated Reunion

February 1, 2553

1102 Hours

Lincoln, Tundra

Cay fell backwards onto the blackened asphalt with such force to sunder the material underneath her body. Whatever the ugly son-of-a-bitch was that took a swipe at her was, it was relentless. And strong. The misshapen creature that might have once been a Brute once more swung it's elongated appendage at the Spartan on the ground. Quickly, Cay rolled to the side; just in time. The deformed monstrosity pierced the street easily with it's shaped arm. _Damn, didn't imagine a Brute could get much more hideous. But, _the Spartan got to her feet, _gotta give the bastard credit. He's one ugly ass piece of shit. _The Brute's terribly mutated head hung to one side, hanging by it's putrid shoulder. The beast charged once more, however this time the Spartan met the attack head-on. Cay launched her muscular arm and penetrated the creature's chest cavity with an unpleasant squishy sound. Suddenly, even as the body went limp, she could feel something only described as tendrils latching onto her arm as she pulled out. What looked like a fleshy sac popped from the Brute, aiming for Cay's chest. The Spartan threw a mid-air punch, but her hand slid off the clammy alien flesh. The thing shot out it's longest tendril, impaling the Spartan near her breasts and sending spurts of blood onto her policed civilian clothes. "Ahh!"

Cay tried beating the determined little balloon of her chest as it attempted to dig into her. Out of options, the Spartan ran full speed towards the burned-out husk of a sedan, noticing a long sliver of glass still attached to the windshield. "How do like this you little asshole!?"

The infectious little sac popped as Cay rammed it into the makeshift weapon, spraying her with a foul noxious blast of air that made her gag with disgust. "Now then," she watched in amazement as the wounds on her chest began to mend, "what the hell is going on?"

Towering skyscrapers were lit ablaze, thick clouds of smoke permeated the city and off in the distance Cay could hear screams and the familiar report of multiple MA5-series rifles on full-automatic. Automated evacuation announcements sounded throughout the burning streets with a robotic monotone voice. Tundra's sun struggled to make its presence known amidst the smoke-filled Lincoln streets. As Cay calmly assessed the situation, she began to think of the events which led to this outcome. An escape from a containment room, but not before observing her body's vastly increased muscle mass. A harrowing journey through tunnels and corridors filled with Jackal guards, all intent on killing her. Her eventual escape from the facility through a lance of Brutes, only to end up on the streets of a city from hell itself. _Now complete with even more unsettling varieties of Brutes and tiny balls of fun that try to burrow into your chest! How lucky am I? Where are all the people though... _Cay's question was quickly answered by a duo of transformed humans, their features more disturbing than the repurposed alien's.The mutated humans leaped at Cay with startling speed from behind a tangled mess of flaming vehicles, appendages already swinging. Swiftly, the Spartan sidestepped and snatched the lead form's "arm" and snapped it back as forcibly as she could. Half liquified bone snapped off with ease from the Spartan's vicegrip and an slimy substance spurted from the wound. Quickly, Cay followed with a python-quick knee to the mutated human's torso, smashing it with a satisfying crunch and obliterating the balloon-sized creature within. The adjacent form lashed out with terrifying velocity, completely intent on cleaving the Spartan in two. Cay swiftly dropped to all fours, her hands slick with the asphalt's coating of gore. The human narrowly dodged the vicious blow, and with a great mustering of strength Cay launched herself literally _through _the infected human. The former human's mutated limbs and center of mass exploded from the Spartan's unrelenting power and coated Cay with a sickly green mucus-like spray of blood. Cay examined the carnage before her, _what the hell happened here? Better yet, what is turning these people into... whatever these things are. _The lone human quickly surveyed her surroundings; she was near what seemed to be a once large and busy intersection, now littered with charred out husks of civilian sedans and modified Insurrectionist vehicles. Most of the buildings and skyscrapers were lit ablaze, thick black smoke lofted into the air and seemed to permeate the burning city. Cay could hear bloodcurdling screams in the distance, and reports of both human and Covenant weaponry. _Sounds close... _Cay looked with disgust upon her "temporary clothes", simple female attire policed from an empty house. Perfectly normal when she first acquired the shirt and pants, now they were stained with the strange green gore of her new found enemy. _And to top it off I neither have armor nor a weapon. Keeps getting better and better... _Cay quickly snatched a vicious-looking shard of twisted alloy from the slick asphalt and made her way across the dead intersection towards the nearest sound of battle. The characteristic roar of an M12 Warthog echoed down the worn street, followed by hundreds of high-pitched screeches and yelps. The Spartan willed her newly augmented body to move, and in less than a few seconds she accelerated to her top speed, sprinting past overturned vehicles and signs of desperate struggle. The seemingly brooding dark orange-black skyline played hell with her vision, but the Spartan could clearly see an Innie Warthog attempting to make it's way through a labyrinth of scorched chassis' and fallen debris, and it's peculiar occupants. The massive bulk of what could only be an Elite leaped from the Hog's backside and planted his crimson armored boot _through _ what used to be a Brute. The menacing alien warrior unleashed a barrage of well-placed carbine rounds upon a writhing band of more of the misshapen creatures, dropping the majority of them in heaps of grotesque limbs and parts. Manning the M12's M46 LAAG was none other than Kai himself, although Cay could tell the obvious physical changes he had undergone. His muscular arms held a death-grip on the the turret's controls as he fired a bone-jarring burst from the LAAG, easily shredding apart countless ranks of the mutated forms in bloody chunks and pieces. Cay ran as fast as she could force her fortified muscles to go, determined to reunite with her lost ally and friend. "Kai, Ka-"

The Spartan was cut short as an impossibly fast olive green blur literally knocked her off her feet with a definitive crunch into the asphalt underneath. Cay attempted to rise, but the blur swept in . The Spartan-III reacted by slashing out with the shard of alloy with enough force to shatter concrete and reinforced steel alike. The superhuman strike merely was deflected by an unseen force that dissipated all of Cay's strength instantly before flashing a golden hue around the huge green silhouette before her. In a microsecond, the figure snapped up a Battle Rifle, the muzzle not even a meter from Cay's bloodied forehead. The bewildered Spartan stared into the emotionless golden visor of her assailant, her body still in a half-crouch defensive posture. The rifle remained motionless like it's operator, tip of the compensator unwavering. Cay cautiously rose to her feet, and found the MJOLNIR-armored giant stood nearly a foot taller than her. "Let me guess, you're one of the Spartan-II's we hear so much about."

Cay noticed the violent report of the LAAG had abruptly stopped as the massive Spartan before her began to speak in a harsh but definitely feminine voice, "so, you are the _other _Spartan Kai mentioned. Hmm," the Spartan lowered the battle rifle, "I'm Spartan-081... Rene. I'm assuming you're Spartan G-034 Cay, correct? I apologize for my actions, this city is full of... enemies."

She watched in amazement as Kai strolled from the Warthog towards her, walking side by side the crimson Elite. Another unknown figure pulled herself from the M12's driver's seat, grabbed a battle rifle from the passenger's side and followed in close pursuit of Kai and the Elite. _So... you're just going to stroll on over? Like nothing happened? I never thought I'd see you again... _Spartan G-115 approached Cay's motionless stance, his hazel eyes didn't back down from Cay's statuesque stare. The Spartan stood tall next to Rene's MJOLNIR, but even with their new enhancements the Spartan-II towered over him. Kai inspected the MA5D in his grasp, sighed and said, "It's good to have you back, Spartan. We're going to ne-"

Cay launched from her stationary position and nearly impaled the hapless Spartan with her fist into his unprotected abdomen. She hit him with such force as to knock the six foot five two hundred and eighty pound Kai ten meters backwards and into the blackened asphalt. Kai quickly snapped to his feet, then like an involuntary reaction clutched onto his side were Cay struck him. Kai held up one hand pathetically, "C'mon Cay, w-what did I say? What do you want me to do?"

Cay marched over to him with such tenacity that Kai would rather prefer these new foes, "I don't know, how 'bout a nice to see you or at least how are you? I mean... do I really not mean that much or what Kai?"

Kai shook his head erratically, "seriously Cay? C'mon, if you haven't noticed this city is crawling with our new best buds that want to rip us to shreds. This honestly isn't the time and place. You know that I... I..."

Cay now stood not a meter from her comrade and put her hands on her hips, "what Kai? I thought you might be dead, I escape from that fucked up complex to see and engage even more fucked up aliens, then arrive to see you not only not dead, but lighting these things up with an LAAG. You know what? You are right, I'll drop it. For now on Kai, we're just members of the same team. We're Spartans, I should have known better than to worry about you."

Kai began to speak, thought better of it and shut his mouth. _Let's give her time to cool down a bit... _A figure wearing ONI-issued Recon armor cradling a battle rifle approached the two reunited Spartan-III's, cocked her head quizzically at the Elite by her side and formed up next to Kai. "I'm First Lieutenant Julia Vavilov, good to know you're okay we could definitely," Julia gazed at the destruction around them, "use another Spartan on our side. Kai here's told us all about you... oh and this big guy," the ODST slugged the Elite playfully in the alien's huge shoulder, "is Field Major Kiel' Antan. As you can see, he's on our side."

Kiel scoffed with a bestial-like snort towards Cay then shouldered his carbine, cautiously scanning the area with his deep-set predator eyes. Rene stepped forwards next to Julia, "We're with ONI Section Zero, Zeta Team. I'm going to guess you've had the same... experience so far as Kai has had. Can you shed light on who this "Reaper" alias is?"

Cay simply shook her head, strands of her blonde hair stuck to her dirtied visage. "All I know is whoever the bastard is, he's mental. And," she shot a glance at Kai's unsuspecting face, "whatever he did to us made us _much _stronger."

Julia responded, "well, whatever the case we need to get the hell out of here, _now._"

Rene took a mighty step towards the dormant M12, "Agreed. Let's mount up and fi-"

Spartan-081's emergency COM channel suddenly keyed on, which she immediately forwarded to Julia's personal audio uplink, then changed the settings to open, and Lieutenant Commander Fields' grim voice sounded from Rene's MJOLNIR. "... God dammit Wallace, can't we open... wait... Spartan-081 this is _Valley of Shadows_, respond... please over."

"This is Spartan-081, Zeta Team hears you Lieutenant Commander. Sir, the situation down here... got a lot more complicated. I think we've hit a major snag sir."

Kiel tightened his grip on his weapon, his eyes darted around their surroundings before listening in with the rest of Zeta Team. Fields voice lowered, "yes, we've seen... images of the city. We know. Listen, you need to evac on the double. You have fifteen minutes unt-"

Rene heart skipped a beat and she could feel the tension building among the individuals before her. "Before _what _Lieutenant Commander?"

"Before that city, and everything around it destroyed by a Shiva-class nuclear missile."

Cay gritted her teeth together and stole one more glance from Kai, who's face said it all. _We're well and truly screwed._


	21. Cloak and Dagger

Chapter Twenty- Cloak and Dagger

February 1, 2553

1109 Hours

UNSC _Death's End_

Spartan G-002 propelled his armored mass up and over a barricade of hardened steel cargo containers. Two clenched his side; the SPI armor's side plates were completely melted and charred, as was the exposed flesh that flowed rivulets of dark crimson blood. With his firing arm still clutched onto an MA5D, Two hastily spun to meet his assailant. The vessels auxiliary lighting abruptly shut off, but with his augmented eyesight the Spartan could clearly make out a shadowy silhouette charging down the cramped hall. Two unleashed the assault rifle's barrage of AP rounds, using his arm's increased muscle mass to keep the weapon steady and true. The Spartan fired until an unsettling _clank! s_ounded from the assault rifle, and the weapon's ammunition counter read 00. The massive shadowy form, however didn't seem fazed, and before Two could drop his body weight to meet it's charge the figure slammed into him full at full velocity, and Two could feel each individual rib snap before being propelled straight through the bulkhead behind him and into the ship's engineering deck.

"Just kill him already, we don't have all day here."

Before Two could determine the source of this new threat, the distinct strength of a titanium-alloy boot slammed into the small of his armored back, sending shocks of pure fire throughout his body. "AHHH!"

Another, half-blurred figure leapt down from an above deck and landed with a _thud _not ten feet from his prone position. "Well," this new enemy took deliberately slow steps towards him, "I guess we could have a _little _fun, right?"

A metallic gauntlet from his attacker behind latched a massive hand onto his SPI helmet, and viciously ripped it off, revealing Two's horribly bruised and bloodied countenance. "You have to admit Drei, killing Spartans is the best entertainment in the world, don't you think? I just get... that sensation, you know?"

The boot planted on his back increased it's pressure, and the Spartan could actually _hear _more snaps until he began seeing stars. Maybe if he went into shock soon...

The now obvious female in front of him made a disturbing clicking noise then sighed, "seriously Drei, you have to be careful, these Three's become... _agitated _the closer to shock they get. I know you're having fun, but let's just be cautious about, okay? Trust me, I can't _wait _to make this little Spartan here wish he was never born."

As his vision came into focus on the figure standing above him, his heart sank. _No, no, no no! It can't be possible. She's... she's a Spartan! _Two clenched his bloody teeth together and stared with tenacity into the golden visor of her MJOLNIR helmet. "What are you doing!? Aren't... aren't you Spartans? Why? Why are you do-"

Another boot smashed the front of his face in, then an armored fist before being flung into the far bulkhead with enough force to leave an ugly gash in the titanium-alloy wall. _Get up Spartan... get up! _Two willed his broken body to rise, his once pristine SPI suit irreversibly damaged. He could actually feel his adrenal system attempt to pump adrenaline in a desperate bid to keep his body standing, and his mind began to fill with a mental fog of bestial-like instincts. Two forced himself to survey his surroundings; the engineering deck was tiered with at least a half-dozen decks above his own. The large room was lit by huge coolant tubes running the length of the deck, but otherwise not much else occupied the space between him and the two MJOLNIR wearing humans directly in front of him. The taller of the two he assumed was "Drei", easily seven feet tall and the one that hounded him throughout the _Death's End. _And... he was _powerful. _Strong enough to toss Two like he was no heavier than paper. The smaller one was the female, who looked as deadly as Drei encased in the black MJOLNIR power armor. Both had rifles strapped to their backs, but neither one actually wielded a firearm. "Look," the female pointed at Two and chuckled deviously, "he's trying to stand! Don't you know Drei shattered the vertebrae in your spine. That _means, _YOU SHOULDN'T BE STANDING!"

Two only saw her move, but that was it. After that, her unnatural speed, even for a Spartan, was too much for the bewildered Two. Still, before she was upon him he managed to track a lightning-fast fist, swiftly dodge it and strike back. Unfortunately, his fist only met air. _Oh shit... _An impossibly fast straight kick impacted his already beaten chestplate and pulverizing what was left of his ribcage. Then another to the abdomen, crushing the bones in the Spartan's reinforced pelvis. Before Two could collapse she launched a vicious plated knee into his beaten and charred side, destroying what remained of his kidney before the Spartan slammed in the deck, bloodied and broken. "You know," Drei appeared by her side, "I kinda like this one. Do you think..."

Drei cocked his head at his companion and shrugged, his voice deep and unwavering, "whatever you think is best, Zwei."

_German numerals... who the hell are these Spartans? _Zwei suddenly took a knee beside Two's motionless body, and ran her hand across the dented, bloody plates of his SPI armor. "I'm Zwei, if you didn't hear Drei here. You know," her gauntlet traced his jawline, "I think you're playing for the wrong team."

Two coughed and a sick mixture of blood and spittle dribbled it's way down his mouth. "It... it was you who slaughtered the entire crew, then nearly killed me. Playing for the wrong team? Are you two insane? You're Spartans, you he-"

Zwei let out a mischievous giggle, "now, who ever said we're _Spartans_? I think you," her finger ran across his lips, "are jumping to conclusions Mr. Spartan."

Even if he wanted to, he couldn't stop Zwei from caressing his face. He literally couldn't will the muscles in his arm, or any muscles for that matter. He was defeated, and she knew it. "We do, however share a lot in common Spartan G-002. Its like this encounter was fated to happen, number Two, don't you think?"

"You...you are ins-"

Before he knew it, what he assumed were Zwei's lips were upon his own, her tongue fought to enter his mouth. When it came down to it, not even the muscles in his mouth could force his lips to stay shut. In a split second, Zwei's face appeared above his own. She was surprisingly beautiful, small yet powerful piercing hazel eyes, full lips and soft white skin. Strands of brown hair hung over and rested on Two's nose, nearly making him sneeze. _What the fuck? _Her MJOLNIR helmet sat adjacent to them, he realized, before she once more ran her hand along the shapes of his face. "Hmmm... he tastes good Drei. I say we keep this one."

Drei took three steps backwards, swiveled on his heels and began to stride, "do whatever makes you contented Zwei. Do you need any he-"

"I'm fine Drei, prepare this vessel for departure, upload Phoenix into the mainframe, she'll take it from there. I'll be in the medbay, our newest member needs to be put back together after you so crudelythrashed him around."

Drei's imposing bulk exited the deck and Zwei's eyes followed him out, before gazing upon Two's semi-conscious face. She playfully nestled her head against the pocket of Two's shoulder and whispered into his ear, "you know, I'm surprised you're still awake. Don't you know when to take a nap sleepyhead?"

"F...fuck you bitch."

Two cringed at the sound of her giggling, "my my aren't we feisty? You have _much _more spirit than the others. They were absolutely terrible! No fun at all, boring boring! But you, you have _something _I like, and I'm going to keep you around. Resist all you want, you will belong to me soon enough, and when you do finally break," the Spartan watched helplessly as she caressed his face more, "we're going to find more Spartans to have some fun with, okay?"

Zwei took firm hold of his chin and sighed, "you're going to take longer than Drei did, I can see it already and I thought he'd be the last I'd take as my own. And yet here I am with Mr. Spartan G-002, my new servant. You know," Zwei began to drag her lips across Two's beaten face, "Drei was just like you once. He thought he'd _never _break, never betray his Spartans. Yet," her lips stopped at his nose, "I broke him and now look at him. He enjoys killing Spartans more than anybody. You'd be surprised how willing, how far you'd go. He's personally eliminated his entire team, one by one. So tell me Spartan G-002, who exactly was on Gold Team?"

Two managed a throaty laugh, "there's nothing you can do to me that would make me compromise my team, _Zwei._"

Zwei lips steadily worked their way down to Two's before planting a long kiss upon his lips. "The more you struggle now, the faster you will become _mine._"

The last thing Spartan G-002 saw were the hauntingly beautiful eyes of Zwei gazing back into his own, before darkness took over and his consciousness faded into dreams.


End file.
